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PRIMARY HANDWORK 



THE MACMILLAN COMPANY 

NEW YORK • BOSTON • CHICAGO • DALLAS 
ATLANTA • SAN FRANCISCO 

MACMILLAN & CO., Limited 

LONDON • BOMBAY • CALCUTTA 
MELBOURNE 

1HE MACMILLAN CO. OF CANADA, Ltd. 

TORONTO 



PRIMARY HANDWORK 



BY 



ELLA VICTORL^ DOBBS, B.S., A.M. 

ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF MANUAL ARTS 
UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI 



THE MACMILLAN COMPANY 
1914 

All rights reserred 



y,* 



^<'f 



Copyright, 1914, 
By the MACMILLAN COMPANY. 

Set up and electrotyped. Published June, 1914 



JliN 18 1914 



J. S. Gushing Co. — Berwick & Smith Co. 
Norwood, Mass., U.S.A. 



4f .J?.- 
©Ci.A374501 






DEDICATED TO 

THE LITTLE CHILDREN OF AMERICA 

WITH THE WISH 

THAT ALL THEIR SCHOOL DAYS 

MAY BE HAPPY DAYS 



,i/^//f0y 



PREFACE 

This book is the outgrowth of long experience as a 
teacher of primary grades, followed by special study of 
handwork as a factor in elementary education. It is 
written with three objects in view : 

First, to gather into a single volume various methods 
already in use in the more progressive schools, and for 
which the best suggestions are scattered through current 
periodicals : 

Second, to organize these methods and present them 
in a simple form for the use of teachers who have had 
no special training in handwork processes : 

Third, accepting conditions as they exist in the small 
town school and the one-room country school, as a basis 
of organization, to offer suggestions which may be 
easily adapted to the conditions of any school with a 
view to bringing present practice into closer harmony 
with the best educational ideals. 

No claim is laid to originaUty, beyond the small de- 
tails in which one person's interpretation of a large 
problem will differ from that of another. 

The projects here outHned have been tested in the 
Public Schools of Columbia, Missouri, under conditions 
which are common to towns of about the same size. 

The point of view has been influenced chiefly by 
the educational philosophy of Prof. John Dewey, es- 
pecially as expressed in his essay '* The Child and the 
Curriculum." The author wishes here to make grate- 



VIU PREFACE 

ful acknowledgement to Dr. Dewey, not only for the 
helpfulness of his writings, but also for the inspiration 
of his teaching. 

Thanks are also due to Dr. Naomi Norsworthy of 
Teachers College, and to Dean W. W. Charters of 
Missouri University, for encouragement in planning the 
book and for criticism of the manuscript. Especial 
acknowledgment is here made to Prof. R. W. Selvidge 
of Peabody College for Teachers, formerly of this Uni- 
versity, for hearty cooperation and helpful suggestions 
in working out the problems described in this book, 
and to the teachers of the Columbia Schools for their 
most efficient services in testing these problems in their 

classrooms. 

E. V. D. 

University of Missouri, 
February, 1914. 



CONTENTS 



CHAPTER 

I. Introduction 

II. Paper Cutting and Poster Making 

III. Booklets 

IV. Criticism and Standards of Workmanship 
V. The House Problem .... 

VI. The ViLLAfiE Street .... 

VII. Sand Tables and what to do with Them 

VIII. Animals and Toys 

IX. Holidays 

X. General Suggestions and Summary . 



REFERENCES 



PAGE 

I 

6 

17 

24 

27 

65 

11 

102 

112 

115 

123 



LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 



House of the Three Bears 






Frontispiece 


I. Paper Cutting. P'irst Grade . 






7 


2. Paper Cutting. Second Grade 










8 


3. Paper Cutting. Second Grade 










10 


4. Paper Tearing 








' 


II 


5. Paper Cutting. Third Grade . 










13 


6. Paper Cutting. Fourth Grade 










15 


7. Pamphlet Sewing 










22 


8. Japanese Sewing 










22 


9. House arranged on a Shelf 










28 


10. A Medieval Castle . 










• ^9 


1 1 . House arranged on a Table — Front View 






32 


12. Hou.se arranged on a Table — Side View 






• 33 


13. House arranged on a Table — Back View 






• 34 


14. House Plan 






• 35 


15. Arrangement of Windows 










• 36 


16. Detail of Hollow Square . 










• 38 


17. Borders 










• 39 


18. Looms and Samples of Weaving 










• 41 


19. Box House by Second Grade . 










• 43 


20. Detail for Paper Weaving 










44 


21. Furniture from Wood Blocks • 










. 48 


22. Furniture from Wood Blocks . 










. 48 


23. Home of White Cloud, the Pueblo C 


;irl 








• 51 


24. Detail of Stairway . 










• 54 


25. Box House, showing Roof 










• 55 


26. Detail of Gable 










. 56 


27. Colonial Kitchen 










• 56 


28. House of the Three Bears 










• 59 


29. Cornstalk House 










. 60 


30. A Flour Mill .... 










62 


31. Box House and Stores 










. 66 



xu 



LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 



32. A Village Street 

^;^. A Grocery. Fourth Grade 

34. A Grocery. Third Grade 

35. A Dry Goods Store 

36. Home in a Hot Country . 

37. Home in a Cold Country 

38. A Sand-table Farm. First Grade 

39. A Sand-table Farm. Second Grade 

40. Detail of Chicken Fence . 

41. Detail of Paper Tree 

42. Overall Boys' Farm 

43. An Apple Orchard . 

44. Robinson Crusoe 

45. Pueblo Indian Village 

46. A Home in Switzerland . 

47. Two Little Knights of Kentucky 

48. How Cedric became a Knight . 

49. A Sugar Camp 

50. A Western Cattle Ranch 

51. The Story of Three Little Pigs 

52. A Japanese Tea Garden . 

53. A Coal Mine .... 

54. A Chariot Race 

55. A Circus Parade 

56. Three-ply Wooden Animals 

57. Detail for Three-ply Wooden Animals with Movable 

58. Notched Rest for Animals 

59. Balancing Figures . 

60. Some Simple Toys . 

61. Adjusting Jumping-Jack in Frame 



Parts 



PAGE 

68 
70 
73 
75 
76 
76 
80 
80 
81 
84 
86 

87 

89 

90 

92 

94 

94 

95 

96 

98 

99 

99 

102 

103 

104 

105 

106 

107 

108 

109 



PRIMARY HANDWORK 



PRIMARY HANDWORK 



CHAPTER I 
INTRODUCTION 

In setting forth the plan and purpose of this little 
book the author wishes to lay equal emphasis on its 
limitations. The outlines and suggestions which fol- 
low are designed for the use of grade teachers who 
have had little or no training in handwork processes 
but who appreciate the necessity of making worthy 
use of the child's natural activity and desire to do. 
The outlines are arranged with reference to schools 
which are not provided with special equipment and 
which have scant funds for supplies. The projects 
require only such materials as empty goods boxes, and 
odds and ends of cloth and paper, which are easily 
obtainable in any community. No extra time is 
required for the work, and it may be successfully car- 
ried out by any teacher who is wilhng to devote a little 
study to the possibilities of things near at hand. 

These outlines do not form a course of study to be 
followed in regular order nor in set lessons coming at 
a definite time. They are, rather, a series of sugges- 
tions to be used wherever and whenever they will 
serve a worthy purpose. They are not to be regarded 



2 . PRIMARY HANDWORK 

as a special subject, having little or no connection 
with the regular class work, but rather as an illustra- 
tive method of teaching the regular subject matter 
whenever the teaching can be done more effectively 
by means of concrete illustrations. It is proposed to 
make greater use of construction as a medium of ex- 
pression, and place making more nearly on a par with 
talking, writing, and drawing. 

Any of the projects outlined may be modified to 
suit varying conditions, and the emphasis placed accord- 
ing to the needs of a particular class. All the sugges- 
tions are given in very simple form, chiefly from the 
standpoint of the first grade, for the reason that it is 
easier to add to the details of a simple problem than 
to simplify one which is complex. 

It is not the purpose here to emphasize the training 
of the hand or the development of technique in hand- 
work processes to the extent commonly expected of a 
course in manual arts, though considerable dexterity 
in the use of tools and materials will undoubtedly be 
developed as the work proceeds. While careless work 
is never to be tolerated in construction any more than 
it would be tolerated in writing or drawing, the stand- 
ard is to be only such a degree of perfection as is 
possible through a child's unaided efforts. It is pro- 
posed to provide him with things to do of such interest 
to him that he will wish to do' his best, and things of 
such a nature that they will please him best when 
they are well done, and so stimulate a genuine desire 
for good work. To this end the suggestions relate to 
things of immediate value and use to the children 



INTRODUCTION 3 

themselves, rather than to things commonly compre- 
hended in a list of articles which are useful from the 
adult point of view. 

Jhe work is to be kept on a level with the child's ex- 
perience and used as a means of broadening his experi- 
ence and Hfting it to a higher level. It must also be 
kept on the level of his constructive abiUty in order that 
he may do things by himself, and develop independence 
through feehng himself master of his tools. Neither 
patterns nor definite directions are provided for the 
details of the projects outlined, for the reason that it 
is desired to make every project a spontaneous ex- 
pression of the child's own ideas. To this end the 
outline serves only as a framework, to be filled in as the 
worker desires. The ready-made pattern implies dicta- 
tion on the part of the teacher and mechanical imitation 
and repetition on the part of the pupil, — a process 
almost fatal to spontaneous effort. While it is possible 
through a method of dictation to secure results which 
seem, at first, to be much better than the crude con- 
structions which children are able to work out for 
themselves, it is only a superficial advantage, and one 
gained at the expense of the child's growth in power 
to think and act independently. It is an advantage 
closely akin to the parrotlike recitation of the pupil 
who catches a few glib phrases and gives them back 
without thought, as compared with the recitation 
of the pupil who thinks and expresses his thoughts 
in his own childish language. 

These outlines are intended not only to emphasize 
independence in self-expression, but also to foster a 



4 - PRIMARY HANDWORK 

social spirit through community effort and develop a 
sense of responsibility through division of labor. A 
child's shortcomings will be brought home to him mxuch 
more vividly if he fails to contribute some essential as- 
signed to him in the construction of a cooperative proj- 
ect, and thereby spoils the pleasure of the whole group, 
than when his failure affects only his individual effort 
in a group of duplicate projects. 

These outlines are intended also to suggest a method 
of opening up to the children, in an attractive way, the 
great field of industry. Their deep interest in playing 
store leads easily to a study of the source, use, and value 
of various forms of merchandise and the essential fea- 
tures of various trades and occupations. Problems of this 
sort are fascinating to children in all the lower grades, 
are rich in valuable subject matter, and suggest things 
to do which are both interesting and worth while. With- 
out attempting to exhaust any phase of the subject, they 
awaken an intelligent interest in the industrial world 
and tend to stimulate thoughtful observation. They help 
to give the children correct ideas about industrial pro- 
cesses as far as their knowledge goes, and to create a 
desire for further knowledge. This general information 
lays a good foundation for later and more serious study 
of the industries and the choice of a vocation. 

These outlines are offered as a means of bridging the 
gap between the formal methods and outgrown courses 
of study still in use and the richer curriculum and more 
vital methods toward which we are working. Much 
time must be spent in study and experimentation before 
a satisfactory reorganization of the curriculum can be 



INTRODUCTION 5 

worked out. Without waiting until this work shall be 
wholly completed, it is possible at once to vitalize the 
most formal course of study through the use of freer 
methods, which permit and encourage self-directed ac- 
tivity on the part of the pupil. The use of such methods 
will not only tend to create a deeper interest in school 
work, but must also help toward the great problem of 
reorganization, by throwing into stronger relief the 
strength and weakness of our present common practice. 



CHAPTER II 
PAPER CUTTING AND POSTER MAKING 

Paper and scissors form a fascinating combination to 
all children, and offer a very direct means of self-expres- 
sion. In the language of a small boy who attempted to 
tell how to do it, " You just think about something 
and then cut out your think.'' The teacher is concerned 
chiefly with the " think " and the way in which it is 
expressed. The children are interested in paper cutting 
chiefly from the pleasure of the activity. Beyond the 
immediate pleasure in the process, the cuttings are valu- 
able only as they indicate the clearness of the child's 
ideas and measure his ability to express them. The 
process is educative only in so far as it helps the small 
worker to '' see with his mind's eye " and to give tangi- 
ble shape to what he thus sees. It is important, there- 
fore, that the work be done in a way that will emphasize 
the thinking rather than the finished product. 

The first question arising is. To what extent shall a 
pattern be used? Shall the teacher cut out the object 
and bid the class follow her example ? Shall she display 
a silhouette or outline drawing of the object she desires 
the children to cut, or shall they work without any exter- 
nal guide to justify or modify the mental picture ? Shall 
they be given a pattern and be allowed to draw around 
it? 

6 



PAPER CUTTING AND POSTER MAKESTG 7 

All of the above methods are used to a greater or less 
extent. Long experience seems to indicate that the first 
cutting of any object should be unassisted by any external 
representation of it whatever, in order that the attention 
of each child may be focused upon his own mental pic- 
ture of the object. When he has put forth his best 



mmms 









Fig. I. — Story of Jack Horner on poster and sand table. Snowflakes in 
background. First grade. Columbia, Missouri. 

effort from this standpoint, he should compare his cutting 
with the real object or a good picture of it and be led to 
see the chief defects in his own production and then 
allowed to try again. 

For example, after telling the story of Mother Hubbard, 
the children may be interested in cutting out dogs. No 
picture or other guide should be used at first, since every 



8 



PRIMARY HANDWORK 



child knows something about dogs. The first cuttings 
are Hkely to be very poor, partly because the children 
have not sufficient control over the scissors and largely 
because their ideas are very vague. In a general com- 
parison of work they will help each other with such criti- 
cisms as, " This dog's head is too big." " That dog's legs 
are too stiff." They are then ready to try again. Only 



"^u.^ 






SKIMO LAND 






Bl ACKSMITH. 



Fig. 2. — Paper cutting. Second grade, Columbia. 

when they have reached the limit of their power to see 
flaws in their work do they need to compare it with the 
real dog or its picture. Only after a child has attempted 
to express his idea and has become conscious in ever so 
small a degree of the imperfection of his expression will 
he really be able to see differences between the real 
object and his representation of it, and thereby clarify 
his mental picture. 



PAPER CUTTING AND POSTER MAKING 9 

The child's imagination is so strong that he is apt to 
see his productions not as they are but as he means them 
to be, and he is unable to distinguish between the orig- 
inal and his copy of it. If the picture or silhouette is 
presented at first, his work becomes to a large extent mere 
copying rather than self-expression. If the teacher cuts 
out a dog and displays it as a sample, the class will be 
apt to see that piece of paper only and not a real dog. 
If the children are permitted to draw the outline either 
freehand or around a pattern, still less mental effort is 
required, and in cutting they see only the bit of line just 
ahead of the scissors and not the object as a whole. 

Such methods (i.e. the use of outlines, silhouettes, 
etc.) will produce better immediate results. It will be 
easier to distinguish dogs and cats from cows and horses 
if a pattern is provided, but it will not produce stronger 
children. Such methods only defeat the chief purpose 
of the work, which is to stimulate the mental effort 
required to hold the mental image of the object in the 
focus of attention during the time required to reproduce 
it in the material form. 

It is also often asked whether the children shall always 
cut directly and without modification or whether they 
shall be permitted to trim off the imperfections of their 
first attempts. While any rule must always be inter- 
preted in the light of immediate circumstances, it is 
generally best to cut directly, and after noting the defects, 
cut again. It is then possible to compare the several 
attempts and see if improvement has been made. Atten- 
tion should be directed to the most glaring defect only, 
and an attempt made to correct it. For example, if the 



10 



PRIMARY HANDWORK 



dog's head is too large, do not trim down, but cut another 
dog and try for better proportions. Compare the second 
attempt with the first, to measure improvement. Even 
little children can be taught to work in this thoughtful 




Fig. 3. — Paper cutting. Second grade. 

way, looking for the defects in their "own work and making 
definite attempts to correct them. To this end much 
cutting from an unlimited supply of newspaper or scratch 
paper will accomplish more than a few exercises in better 
paper which must be trimmed and worked over for the 



PAPER CUTTING AND POSTER MAKING 



II 



sake of economy. If little children are allowed to trim 
off, they are apt, in the pure joy of cutting, to trim too 
much and lose the idea with which they started — a pro- 
cess which tends to vagueness rather than clearness. To 
prevent this it is often helpful to preserve both pieces 
of paper, i.e. the cutting and the hole. (See Fig. 4.) 
Paper Tearing. — Paper tearing serves many of the 
same purposes sought in cutting, and has several strong 





Fig. 4. — Paper tearing. 



points in its favor. Working directly with the finger 
tips tends to develop a desirable dexterity of manipula- 
tion. The nature of the process prevents the expression 
of small details and tends to emphasize bold outlines and 
big general proportions. Working directly with the 
fingers tends also to prevent a weak dependence upon 
certain tools and tends to develop power to express an 
idea by whatever means is at hand. 

Posters. — The term "poster" as here used includes 



12 ' PRIMARY HANDWORK 

all mounted pictures made by children, such as cut- 
tings, drawings, paintings, and scrap pictures. 

A poster may be the work of one child or of a group. 
A single poster may tell the whole story, or a series of 
posters may be made to show a sequence of events. A 
series of posters may be bound together in book form. 
For poster making single sheets of paper, medium weight 
and of neutral tone, are needed. The sheets should be 
of uniform size for individual use so that they could be 
bound together if desired. For cooperative work and 
special problems larger sheets will be needed. 

SUGGESTED PROBLEMS FOR PAPER WORK 

Cutting out Pictures. — This serves well for first effort 
with scissors. The interest in the picture furnishes a 
motive, while the outline serves as a guide and allows the 
attention to be given wholly to the control of the scissors. 

Free cutting of single objects — such as animals, fruits, 
trees, furniture, utensils, etc. — intensifies and clarifies 
mental pictures and stimulates observation if the child 
is led to express his own ideas first and then to compare 
his expression with the original and note his deficiencies. 
As far as possible choose objects with strong bold out- 
lines for the first attempts. There should be some 
marked feature, such as Bunny's long ears, which calls 
for emphasis. To cut a circular piece of paper which 
might be an apple or a peach, a walnut or a tomato, will 
not aid much in clarifying a mental picture, while 
Bunny's long ears, even though crudely cut, will be more 
deeply impressed on the child's mind. 

Illustrations for Stories. — Single Illustration. — After 



PAPER CUTTING AND POSTER MAKING 



13 



a story has been read aloud and the characters and 
events freely discussed by the class, each child may be 
encouraged to represent the part which has appealed to 
him — i.e. " cut what he wants to cut." After the cut- 
tings are mounted they will probably form a series which 
will tell the whole story. When several children illus- 
trate the same feature, it offers opportunity for com- 
parison and judgment as to which ones have told the 
story most effectively. For example, in the story of 
the Three Bears, the cuttings may show the three bears 
in three relative sizes, the three chairs, the three beds. 






fSDAV FRIOAV SATUf 



'-" M i'\^^ 



Fig. 5. — Free cutting. Third grade. Columbia, Missouri. 

the table, and the three bowls of porridge. (See notes 
on Criticism.) 

Series. — Let each child select the two or three most 
important events in a story and illustrate these in a single 
poster or series of posters. 

Community Poster. — A long story such as the " Old 
Woman and the Silver Sixpence " may be illustrated by 
the class as a whole, each child cutting some one feature. 
This requires attention to relative proportions so that 
the parts may be in harmony when assembled. Such 
posters may be used for wall decoration. 

Charts. — Poster making may also include the making 
of charts containing samples of manufactured articles in 



14 - PRIMARY HANDWORK 

various stages of development. For example, a chart 
on cotton might show raw cotton, cord, thread, cloth of 
various sorts, lace, paper, and other materials made 
from cotton. Such a chart might also include pictures of 
cotton fields, spinning and weaving machinery, and other 
related features. 

Materials. — Too much can scarcely be said in favor 
of much cutting from an unlimited supply of common 
wrapping paper, newspaper, or other waste paper, in 
which the children are entirely unhampered by such 
injunctions as, " Be careful and get it just right the first 
time, because you can't have another paper if you waste 
this piece." The possible danger of cultivating waste- 
fulness is less serious and more easily overcome than the 
very probable danger of dwarfing and cramping the power 
of expression. Here, if anywhere, the rule holds good 
that we learn to do by doing, and abundant practice is 
essential to success. 

Black silhouette or poster paper is most effective when 
mounted, but is too expensive for general use in large 
classes. 

Brown kraft paper and tailor's pattern paper serve well 
for both cuttings and mounts. Both of these papers 
may be had by the roll at a low cost. The tailor's paper 
comes in several dull colors, which make good mounts 
for cuttings from white scratch paper or the fine print of 
newspaper. 

Bogus paper makes an excellent mount and is very 
inexpensive. 

The Pasting Process. — To a large number of teachers 
the pasting lesson is a time to be dreaded and its results 



PAPER CUTTING AND POSTER MAKING 



15 



a cause of discouragement. Especially is this true if the 
class is large and the teacher attempts to have all the class 
pasting at one time. In many phases of school work it is 
so much easier to control forty or fifty children if they all 
act in unison that we are prone to use the method too 
often and apply it to forms of work much better managed 
by groups. The process of teaching little folks to paste 
is greatly simplified by the use of the group method. 



h^i 



^ OA ^ M^ JL 



Fig. 6. — Free cutting. Fourth grade. Columbia, Missouri, 



If the room affords a large table at which a small group 
may work, the teacher can easily supervise the work of 
the entire group. If there is no table, the teacher can 
work with one or two rows at a time or have very small 
groups come to her desk. The secret of the success of 
the group method lies in having the rest of the class busy 
with some occupation sufficiently interesting to prevent 
impatience while waiting for turns. The command to 
** fold hands and sit still till your turn comes " is sure to 
cause trouble, because children are physically unable to 
obey it. 



1 6 PRIMARY HANDWORK 

The most important factor in successful pasting is a 
liberal supply of waste paper. Each child should be 
supplied with a number of single sheets of newspaper 
torn to convenient size, to paste on, each sheet to be 
discarded as soon as used. This decreases the danger of 
untidy work. With the cutting laid upon the waste 
paper, the paste may be spread with brush, thin wood, or 
thick paper, well out over the edges. As soon as the 
pasted cutting is Kfted the waste paper should be folded 
over to cover all wet paste and lessen the possibihty of 
accidents. After the cutting is placed upon the mount, 
a clean piece of waste paper should be laid over it and 
rubbed until the air is all pressed out and the cutting 
adheres firmly. The waste paper overlay may be rubbed 
vigorously without harm, whereas a light touch of sticky 
fingers directly upon the cutting will leave a soiled spot, 
if it does not tear the moist paper. If children are care- 
fully taught in small groups to follow this method of 
pasting, in a fairly short time all but the weakest members 
of the class will be able to paste neatly without much 
supervision. 



CHAPTER HI 

BOOKLETS 

The making of booklets forms a valuable accompani- 
ment to almost every phase of school work. Even simple 
exercises, when put into book form, take on a dignity 
otherwise impossible and seem more worth while. It is 
impossible to work with much enthusiasm and care on 
exercises which are destined only for the wastebasket. 

The chief value in the making of booklets is lost when 
they are made for display purposes only. Many diffi- 
culties are sure to arise when the teacher, for the sake of 
her own reputation, sets an arbitrary standard and tries 
to force every member of the class to meet it. Because 
of these difficulties many teachers dread and avoid work 
of this sort, but the trouble Hes in our false standards 
and poor methods rather than in the process itself. 
When the exhibit idea is uppermost, each page must be 
examined with great care, done over again and again if 
need be, until the standard is reached or the patience of 
both teacher and pupil exhausted. In such a case the 
work practically ceases to be the child's own. Instead of 
expressing an idea of his own in his own way, he tries to 
express the teacher's idea in the teacher's way, and it is 
not surprising that he fails so often. 

The booklet serves its best purpose when it combines 
c 17 



1 8 - PRIMARY HANDWORK 

both value and need ; that is, when it is something 
which seems worth while to the pupil and when he feels 
responsible for its success. He should feel something 
akin to the responsibility one feels in writing an impor- 
tant letter ; that is, that it must be right the first time 
because there is no opportunity to try again and that he 
cannot afford to do less than his best because what is 
done will stand. 

To ^' express his own idea in his own way " does not 
mean that his work is to be undirected or that poor 
results are to be accepted. It does mean that when an 
idea and a means of expressing it have been suggested 
to him, he shall be allowed to do the best he can by him- 
self, and that when he has done his best, it shall be 
accepted even though imperfect. Under no circumstances 
should his work be " touched up " by the teacher. If he 
is not asked to do things which are too hard for him, he 
will not make many serious errors. If these are wisely 
pointed out, they will not often be repeated. If his 
attention is held to one or two important features at a 
time, each effort will mean some gain. 

The making of a booklet in the primary grades should 
really consist in making a cover to preserve pages al- 
ready made or to receive pages on certain topics as 
they are finished. The making of an animal book, for 
example, might be a continuous process. Whenever a 
new animal is studied and a cutting or drawing of it 
made, the new page may be added to the book. 

The first books should be picture books only, collec- 
tions of cuttings, drawings, and mounted pictures. 
As the children learn to write they may add first the 



BOOKLETS 19 

name and then short descriptions of the pictures, the 
development proceeding by easy stages until their com- 
position work takes the form of the illustrated story. 

Books which are a collection of single sheets are, as a 
rule, most satisfactory in the primary school. The 
single sheet is much more convenient to use, and there 
is always an inspiration in beginning with a fresh sheet 
of paper. It is more difficult to paste cuttings into a 
book, and if pages are spoiled, the book is spoiled. If 
separate sheets are used, a poor one may be done over 
or discarded without affecting the rest. 

The making of booklets and posters offers an ex- 
cellent opportunity for developing artistic appreciation. 
It is not enough for the teacher to provide only good 
colors from which the children may choose, and to super- 
vise the spacing of pictures and then flatter herself 
that because the results are good that the children are 
developing good taste. Unless they really want the 
good things, little real gain has been made. Unless 
they see some reason for the arrangement of a page, 
other than that the teacher wants it that way, little has 
been accomplished. 

The first attempts will show little or no idea of balance 
or good spacing. The early color combinations are apt 
to be crude. If the best things they do are praised and 
their attention is constantly directed to the good points 
in things about them, they will begin to want those 
things. They will begin gradually to feel a greater 
pleasure in a well-balanced page than in one on which 
big and little pictures are stuck indiscriminately. If 
they are given all possible freedom in matters of choice, 



20 - PRIMARY HANDWORK 

it will be possible to measure their real progress and to 
know what points need emphasis. 

The more accustomed the children are to tasteful sur- 
roundings, the easier will be their progress, but whether 
they come from tasteful homes or the reverse, the process 
is the same. Real progress will undoubtedly be slow, 
but it should be upon a sure foundation. 

SUGGESTED TOPICS FOR BOOKLETS 

Stories. — Series of illustrations either cut or drawn 
for any of the stories read by the class. 

Animal Book. — Cuttings or sketches of animals. 
The name and short statement of some characteristic 
may be added by children who are able to write. Trees, 
flowers, fruits, etc., may be treated in the same way. 

A. B. C. Book. — A page for each letter of the alphabet 
to be filled with pictures and names of objects having 
the same initial letter. 

House Book. — A page for each room, upon which may 
be mounted pictures of things appropriate to the room. 
Newspaper advertisements and catalogs furnish abundant 
material for this problem. The work not only helps the 
children to classify present knowledge, but offers oppor- 
tunity for judgment as to arrangement and relative 
proportions. 

How People Live. — A book of pictures of houses in 
different countries. 

Famous Houses. — Pictures of famous buildings and 
homes of famous people. 

What we Wear. — Pictures showing materials from 
which clothing is made, the methods of production and 
manufacture. 



BOOKLETS 21 

What we Eat. — Vegetable foods may be grouped as 
roots, stalks, leaves, seeds, etc. Animal foods may be 
classified according to the animal from which they are 
obtained and the part of the animal from which they are 
cut. Suggestions for cooking may be added. 

How we Travel. — Pictures showing vehicles and con- 
veyances of all sorts, classified as ancient and modern, 
or according to the countries in which they are used, 
or the motive power, as horses, electricity, steam, etc. 

In connection with elementary geography and his- 
tory, booklets and posters may be made up from pic- 
tures cut from discarded papers, catalogs, and magazines, 
as well as original drawings. A great variety of topics 
may be profitably illustrated in this way. As, for ex- 
ample, land and water forms, famous mountains, lakes, 
rivers, etc., products and processes of cultivation and 
manufacture, famous people, costumes and customs of 
other times and places, utensils and weapons of earher 
times. 

Fastenings. — The simplest method of binding single 
sheets is by means of paper fasteners and eyelets. 
Though these are not expensive, some schools cannot 
afford to buy them. Cords may be used in several ways 
and serve as part of the decoration. 

The Simple Tie. — Punch three holes in the margin, 
at least one half inch from the edge to prevent tearing 
out. Insert the cord in the middle hole, carry through 
one end hole, then through the other end hole, then 
back through the middle and tie. (See Fig. 7.) 

Japanese Sewing. — Punch holes at regular intervals, 
as one inch apart. Sew through first hole twice, making 



22 



PRIMARY HANDWORK 



a loop around the back, — repeat the process until a 
loop has been made for each hole, — carry the cord in 




Fig. 7. — Pamphlet sewing. 



and out through the holes back to the starting point, 
Ming in the blank places and making a continuous Hne, 
and tie ends together with a small knot. (See Fig. 8.) 




Fig. 



r t 

Japanese binding. 



BOOKLETS 23 

Decoration. — Only the simplest decoration should be 
aitempted. A plain cover of good color tied with a 
cord of harmonious color will have elements of beauty 
without further decoration. A single border line well 
placed may be used and offers opportunity for develop- 
ing a nice sense of proportion by studying the results 
to see which borders are neither too near the edge nor 
too far from it. 

A well-printed, well-placed title is often the most 
satisfactory decoration. Printing should be introduced 
early, and the children encouraged to make good plain 
letters. In order to get the title in good proportion 
and well placed, it is helpful to cut a piece of paper the 
desired size and lay it on the cover, moving it about to 
see where it looks best. Until the children have learned 
to do fairly neat work it is often helpful to print the 
title on a separate piece and paste it in place. It is 
discouraging to spoil an otherwise good cover by a bad 
letter, and this process lessens that danger. 

Before the children learn to print, a simple border or 
band across the cover may take the place of the title. 
The border may be drawn in crayons or be free-hand 
cuttings. 

Too much emphasis cannot be laid upon the beauty 
of simphcity in decoration. Children are incUned to 
think beauty means fanciness and that beauty increases 
with the quantity of decoration. It is necessary to 
begin early to develop a taste for good design. 



CHAPTER IV 
CRITICISM AND STANDARDS OF WORKMANSHIP 

Criticism. — An important feature of all self-directed 
activity is the ability to judge one's efforts and intelli- 
gently measure one's success. This abihty is a matter 
of slow growth and must be cultivated. It is not enough 
for the teacher to pass judgment upon a piece of work 
and grade its quaUty. The worker himself must learn 
to find his own mistakes and how to correct them. 
Class criticism offers the best means of developing this 
power, but must be tactfully conducted. 

Little children are brutally frank in expressing their 
opinions and need to be taught how to be truthful and 
yet not unkind. They need to be taught what to look 
for and how to find it, and how to compare one thing 
with another and discover why one pleases and another 
displeases. The first essential in the training is emphasis 
on the good rather than the bad. It is a gospel of '' do " 
rather than of " don't." The earliest efforts of the class 
may well be confined to comments upon the features 
they like and, if possible, the reason for the liking. This 
will forestall any tendency to call undue attention to the 
poor efforts of weak workers. At first many children 
will scarcely discriminate between their admiration for 
a piece of work and their love for the worker and will be 

24 



CRITICISM AND STANDARDS OF WORKMANSHIP 25 

apt to praise the work of their special friends. This 
tendency will gradually disappear through the develop- 
ment of a real basis of appreciation. 

The second essential concerns the improvement of 
the things which are not good. Criticism which merely 
points out what is bad is of httle value. Helpful criticism 
must point out what is good and why, and what is weak 
and how to make it stronger. If, for example, the class 
is considering the success of their efforts to illustrate 
the story of the Three Bears, they should be encouraged 
to make such comments as, '' John's chairs look too 
small for his table," '' Mary's bowls are all about the 
same size." The criticism should direct the thought 
to its possible remedy. It is generally better to pass 
over defects for which no immediate remedy can be 
suggested. 

Standards of Workmanship. — The standard of ex- 
cellence by which acceptable work is measured must 
always vary according to the abihty of the class. The 
best the child can do, alone and unaided, should be the 
only standard of measurement, and his best efforts should 
always be accepted, no matter how crude. In no other 
way can real growth be observed and genuine progress 
made. 

In schools where arbitrary standards are set either 
by supervisors or by the rivalry of teachers, the tendency 
to help the children by doing part of the work for them 
for the sake of the apparent results, offers the teacher's 
most serious temptation to selfishness. In a few cases 
it is helpful for the teacher to add a few strokes to a 
drawing or adjust some detail in construction, that the 



26 . PRIMARY HANDWORK 

child may see the value of certain small changes in the 
place where they will mean most to him. Such work 
should not be exhibited as an example of the child's 
accomplishment, but should be treated as practice work. 
As a rule the teacher's demonstration should be made 
on other material and not on that used by the pupil. 
In no particular are primary schools open to greater 
criticism than in the too common habit of setting ar- 
bitrary standards of excellence and attempting to force 
all children to reach them. Such standards are usually 
too high for honest attainment and tempt or force the 
teacher to use methods which cannot be defended by 
any sound principle of pedagogy. 

Values change with the purpose of the work. A 
thing is well made when it serves its purpose adequately. 
Toys must be strong enough to permit handling. Me- 
chanical toys must work. Sewing must be strong as 
well as neat. In illustrative problems, in which effect 
is the chief consideration, technique needs Kttle emphasis, 
and workmanship may be of a temporary character. 

Each thing made should establish its own standard 
in a way to appeal to the child's common sense. 



CHAPTER V 
THE HOUSE PROBLEM 

The making of a playhouse has long been an accepted 
feature of primary work, but we have not always made 
it yield all of which it is capable, either in the self-directed 
activity of the children or in correlated subject matter. 
It has, in many cases, been only a bit of recreation from 
the more serious work of the school. In a house pre- 
pared by the janitor or older pupils the children have 
been allowed to arrange and rearrange ready-made 
furniture contributed from their playthings at home, 
but Httle creative work has been attempted. In other 
cases an elaborate house, carefully planned by the 
teacher, has been built and furnished by the children, 
but, because of the detailed planning, the children's 
part in it became merely a mechanical following of 
directions. In some cases relative proportions in rooms 
and furnishings have received scant attention ; in others, 
color harmonies have been all but ignored. These 
varying methods of carrying out the house-building idea 
are not without value and may often be justified by 
local conditions, but their results are meager compared 
with the possible richness of the problem. 

Playing at house building and housekeeping appeals 
to an interest so universal that children of all times and 

27 



28 



PRIMARY HANDWORK 




THE HOUSE PROBLEM 



29 



nations yield to its power. It is therefore necessary to 
take account of its influence in their development and 





I 


f.,\-.w..'{ .jp- "^^^BBPi^.- 





Fig. 10. — Medieval castle. Built by third grade. Franklin, Indiana. 

An example of elaborate work which aroused the interest of pupils and patrons and 
paved the way for freer work later. 



to dignify it with the approval of the school. We 
must refine and enrich it by our direction and suggestion 
without robbing it of its simplicity and charm. 



30 . PRIMARY HANDWORK 

In the suggestions which follow, an attempt is made 
to utilize this natural activity of children in an occupa- 
tion which appeals to them as worth while. At the 
same time it may furnish ample opportunity for the 
general development and effective teaching of various 
phases of subject matter which are incident to the oc- 
cupation, i.e. number in connection with measurements, 
art in the proportions and color combinations, language 
through discussions and descriptions. 

The work is kept on the level of the children's ex- 
perience by throwing them constantly on their own 
responsibility in every possible detail, the teacher never 
dictating the method of procedure and guiding the work 
with as few suggestions as possible. The work, being 
on the level of their experience, appeals to the children 
as very real and worth while. It is, therefore, intensely 
interesting, and they work without urging. 

General Plan. — A house may be constructed from 
several empty goods boxes, each box forming one room 
of the house. The boxes or rooms are arranged in con- 
venient order, but are not fastened together. Adjoin- 
ing rooms are connected by doors carefully cut in both 
boxes so that the holes match. Windows are also 
sawed out where needed. The walls are papered, careful 
attention being given to color schemes, border designs, 
and relative proportions in spacing. Floors are provided 
with suitable coverings — woven rugs, mattings, lino- 
leums, tiles, according to the purpose of the room. 

Each step is discussed and more or less definitely 
outlined before the actual making is begun, furnishing 
opportunity for oral language of a vital sort. Com- 



THE HOUSE PROBLEM 3 1 

pleted parts are examined and criticized, furnishing 
further opportunity for exercise in oral language while 
directing attention to strong and weak points in the 
work. 

The materials needed are easily obtainable and in- 
expensive, consisting chiefly of empty boxes and odds 
and ends of paper, cloth, and yarn, together with car- 
penters' scraps. 

The tools needed are few, and in some cases may be 
brought from home by the children for a few days, as 
needed. The necessary time is found by making the 
incidental problems serve as subject matter for regular 
lessons. Making designs for tiling, hnoleum, and borders 
for wall paper, planning relative proportions for doors, 
windows, and furnishings will supply material for very 
practical lessons in art. The problems incident to the 
measurement of doors and windows, tables and chairs, 
are number work of a vital sort and may be legitimately 
used as a regular number lesson. Discussions, descrip- 
tions, and definite statements of plans all form vital 
language exercises if rightly used. 

HOUSE PLANS IN DETAIL 

Materials. — Empty Store Boxes of Soft Wood. — Sizes 
may vary, but where several are grouped for a house, they 
should be near enough the same height to make a fairly 
level ceiling. About lo X 12 X 18 in. is a convenient 
size. 

Paper for Walls. — Scraps of ingrain wall papers 
may be had from dealers for little or nothing. Cover 
paper in good colors may be purchased by the sheet. 



32 - PRIMARY HANDWORK 

Tailor's paper and brown wrapping paper serve well, 
and are sold by the roll at a low price. 

Pasteboard (strawboard or juteboard) may be used 
for the roof. 

Weaving Materials. — Rugs may be made from carpet 
rags, rug yarns, rovings, chenille, or jute; towels from 




Fig. II. — House arranged on a table. Front view. Built by first grade. 
Columbia, Missouri. 

crochet cotton; and hammocks from macrame cord or 
carpet warp. 

Wood for Furniture. — Bass, white pine, poplar, or 
other soft wood. Box tops, if of soft wood, may be 
made to serve nearly all needs. If possible, provide 
thin wood (about \ in. thick) in various widths, from 



THE HOUSE PROBLEM 33 

one inch to six inches, so that only one dimension 
need be measured. Provide also thick pieces i|^ in. or 
2 in. square for beds and chairs ; I in. square for table 
legs. 

Nails of various sizes, chiefly inch brads, are needed. 

Tools. — The tools actually necessary are few. A 
class can get along with one saw and still do good work, 
though there will be times when several saws will facilitate 




Fig, 12. — House arranged on a table. Side view. Built by second grade. 
Columbia, Missouri. 



progress. Some tools are needed only for a short time 
and sometimes may be borrowed from the homes. It 
is more satisfactory to have the school provided with 
the essential tools whenever possible. The essential 
tools include : 

Brace and auger bit, for boring holes in doors and 
windows. Needed for a short time only. 

Compass saw, for sawing out doors and windows. 



34 



PRIMARY HANDWORK 



Crosscut saw, for sawing off lumber. School should 
own at least one. 

Miter box, for holding lumber and guiding saw. An 
old one, good enough for children's use, will frequently be 




Fig. 13. — House arranged on a table. Back view. Built by second grade. 
Columbia, Missouri. 



contributed by a carpenter. The miter box should be 
fastened firmly to a low table or box. 

Hammers, several of medium size. 

Try-square, a very valuable tool for setting right 
angles, provided the teacher and pupils know how to use 
it. 



THE HOUSE PROBLEM 



35 



r- 



KUcKeh 



L 

r 



iPihlH^f room 



^' 



3e4» 



Arrangement of Rooms. — The sort of house a man 
can build is governed by his resources and his site. 
Considering the number of boxes as resources and the 
table or shelf on which they are to stand as the site, the 
same big factors which enter into any house-building 
problem control the size and style of the schoolroom 
playhouse. What sort of 
house is desired? What sort 
of house can be built from the 
materials at hand? What 
sort of house can be built in 
the space at our disposal? 

The boxes may be arranged 
on a shelf with all the open 
sides toward the class, as in 
Fig. 9. This economizes space, 
and all of the rooms are visi- 
ble at once. A two-story 
house is easily built on this 
plan. If economy of space 
is not necessary, the boxes 
may be placed on a table 
with the open sides of the 
boxes toward the edges of the table, as in Figs. 11, 
12, and 13. This permits a more artistic grouping of 
the rooms. (See Fig. 14.) 

The responsibiHty in grouping the boxes should be 
thrown as fully as possible upon the children, the teacher 
merely suggesting where necessary. It should be their 
house, not the teacher's. The planning should not be 
hurried but time allowed to discuss the advantages and 



L 



JL 



I'tvih.^ roont 



Fig. 14. — House plan. 



36 



PRIMARY HANDWORK 



disadvantages of different plans and reach an agreement. 
In trying to express individual opinions convincingly 
their ideas will become clearer — a factor in the develop- 
ment of the children which is much more important 
than any of the actual details of the house itself. 

Whether the class de- 
cides to have one or 
two bedrooms in the 
house is a matter of 
small consequence. 
Whether or not they 
are growing in power 
to appreciate condi- 
tions and make an 
intelligent decision is 
a matter of great 
consequence. Their 
decisions when made 
may not always 
reach the high stand- 
ard at which the 
teacher is aiming, but 
if they have really 
made a decision, not 
merely followed the 
teacher's suggestion, 
and if their independent selections from time to time 
show a higher standard of appreciation and greater 
refinement of taste in ever so small a degree, it is 
evidence of genuine growth upon a sure foundation. 
Doors and Windows. — The size and arrangement of 



^^^^ 



Fig. 15. — Arrangement of windows. 



THE HOUSE PROBLEM 37 

doors and windows should be freely discussed. Various 
possible arrangements may be sketched upon the black- 
board by the children. For example, see Fig. 15, a 
and b. When a plan is adopted, the doors and windows 
should be carefully drawn on the outside of each box, 
using the try-square to get right angles. 

Bore holes in the corners of the doors and windows 
and saw out with keyhole or compass saw. In order to 
avoid mistakes it is well, after sawing out the opening 
for a door in one box, to place the two boxes together 
and test the measurements before sawing out the second 
opening. A mistake of this sort, however, is not fatal, 
but may prove the most effective way of impressing 
the workers with the necessity of careful measurement. 

Walls. — The decoration of the walls will furnish 
material for several art lessons. The discussion should 
turn first to the suitability of different styles for different 
purposes, such as tihng for kitchen and bathroom walls, 
light papers for dark rooms, etc. The division of wall 
space will be the next point to be settled, i.e. the height 
of the tiling or wainscot, the width of a border, or the 
effect of horizontal and vertical lines in breaking up wall 
space. These questions may be discussed as far as the 
immediate circumstances and the development of the 
class suggest. 

The question of color combinations demands special 
attention. Unless the children come from refined 
homes their ideas of color will be very crude, and if con- 
tributions of material have been asked for, some gaudy 
impossibilities in flowered paper are apt to be presented. 
If so, it may require considerable tact on the part of the 



38 ' PRIMARY HANDWORK 

teacher to secure a satisfactory selection without casting 
any reflections on the taste of somebody's mother. This 
difficulty may be avoided to a degree by providing all 
the materials necessary. It is not enough, however, to 
cause the children to select good combinations at the 
teacher's suggestion while in their hearts they are longing 
for the gaudy thing she has frowned upon. It is better 
to get an honest expression from them, even though it 
is very crude, and endeavor to educate their taste to a 
love for better things, so that each time they choose 

: y the choice may be on a 

\- y^ higher level of apprecia- 

\ / tion. Immediate results 

'*'o\ X may not be as beautiful 

\v /^ by this plan, and apparent 

^^ progress may be slow, but 

Fig. 16. — Detail (i hollow square. 11, 1 i_i 1 

only by some such method 
can a real appreciation be developed which will prevent 
the return to the crude expression as soon as the 
teacher's influence is withdrawn. 

Plain papers generally give the most pleasing effects. 
Attractive borders may be made by cutting simple 
units and repeating them at intervals. Almost any 
motif may be used for the unit. Animals, birds, trees, 
flowers, ships, etc., serve well. The process of making 
the border should be a serious lesson in design. A good 
border is not merely the repetition of a pretty figure. 
The units must not be too far apart nor too close to- 
gether. The shape of the figure used must be such that 
each unit seems to need the next one. Little children 
will usually take greatest pleasure in working from 



THE HOUSE PROBLEM 



39 



some nature motif, as llowcr or animal, but interesting 
work can be done with simple geometric figures. Take, 
for example, the hollow square. Fold a square of i)aper 
on both diagonals. (See Fig. 16.) Cut on dotted 




Fig. 17. — Borders using hollow square. 

line. Let each child cut several and lay them in order 
for a border or mount them on a paper of different color. 
Let the work of the class be put up for general criticism. 
(See notes on Criticism.) Several points which very 
small children are able to appreciate will be found to 
enter into the success or failure of their efforts. 'J'he 



40 PRIMARY HANDWORK 

hollow square itself may be cut too wide and look clumsy, 
or cut too narrow and look frail. In the arrangement 
they may be too close together and look crowded, or 
too far apart and look scattered. A sensitiveness to 
good proportions comes naturally to only a few people, 
but nearly all are capable of a higher degree of apprecia- 
tion if their attention is directed to the essential elements 
which make things good or bad. The beginnings of 
this appreciation lie in simple things which are easily 
understood by first-grade children. 

Floors. — Many of the considerations which enter into 
the selection of wall decorations are of equal importance 
in choosing floor coverings. What will be suitable to 
the purpose of each room? Why do we use linoleum 
in the kitchen and warm rugs in the bedroom? Shall 
we use small rugs or a carpet? What colors must we 
have on the floor to harmonize with the colors on the 
wall? What designs are possible and desirable for the 
materials we have to use ? 

Rug Weaving Materials. — The market offers a wide 
variety of materials prepared especially for school 
use. Among them the most satisfactory for use with 
small workers are cotton rovings, loose twisted jute, and 
cotton chenille. These, especially the first two, are 
coarse and work up rapidly, and may be had in very 
desirable colors. Even the cheapest of them, however, 
will prove an expensive item for the school with limited 
funds, and ordinary carpet rags may be made to serve 
every purpose. Often these will be contributed by 
members of the class. By a careful selection and com- 
bination of colors very artistic results can be produced 



THE HOUSE PROBLEM 4I 

which are in some respects more satisfactory than any 
obtained from the so-called weaving materials, and have 
the added advantage of costing practically nothing. 

Looms. — The market also offers a great variety of 
looms for school use, many of them quite simple in con- 
struction and moderate in price. In schools where 



Fig. 18. — Looms and samples of weaving. 

bench work is taught, the making of a loom is an ex- 
cellent problem either for the weavers themselves or 
for an older class working for them. If the looms are 
made by the little weavers themselves, only the simplest 
possible construction should be used, that the work may 
be completed and the loom put to use before the worker 
loses sight of the fact that the purpose is to provide 
carpet for the house. Children lose interest in long- 



42 PRIMARY HANDWORK 

drawn-out processes, and for that reason it is better to 
provide them with the necessary tools as far as possible 
while interest in the house building is keen. Later, if 
considerable enthusiasm has been aroused for weaving, 
individual looms may be made for home use. For the 
school with scant funds a very satisfactory loom may be 
improvised by driving nails one fourth inch apart in the 
ends of a shallow box of convenient size and stretching 
the warp threads across the open top. 

For very small rugs a cardboard loom will serve. 
This may be made by cutting notches or punching holes 
along opposite edges of a piece of cardboard into which 
the warp may be strung. If a knitting needle is in- 
serted at each side, the cardboard will be stiffened and 
the edges of the rug kept straight. Weaving needles 
may be purchased from supply houses. Wooden 
needles cost 50 cents per dozen. Sack needles serve well 
for small rugs and may be had at any hardware store 
for 10 cents per dozen. 

Weaves. — For first weaving the plain " over one, 
under one " on cotton warp with rags or other coarse 
woof is generally best. Variety may be introduced by 
weaving a stripe or border of a different tone near each 
end of the rug. Vertical stripes serve well as another 
easy method of variation and are produced by using 
two woof threads of different tones and weaving first 
with one and then with the other. This weave is very 
attractive as the body of the rug with a plain border at 
either end. 

As soon as the children have mastered the plain weave 
and have a fairly clear idea of the possibihties in design 



THE HOUSE PROBLEM 



43 



through varying the colors in the woof only, they may 
be initiated into the mysteries of the " gingham weave " 
and allowed to experiment with the variations in warp 
as well as in woof. Cotton rovings is an excellent 
material for weaves of this sort. This weave may also 




Fig. 19. — Box house by second grade. Columbia, Missouri. 

be used with rafha to make matting for the dining-room 

floor. 

' Paper mats may also be used as carpets with good 

effect. Weaving paper strips is often an easier process 

to little children than weaving with textiles, except where 

very coarse textile materials are used. For paper mats 

select paper of suitable color and cut to the size desired 



44 



PRIMARY HANDWORK 



for the mat. Fold on the short diameter. Cut slashes 
from the folded edge, not less than one half inch apart, 
to within one inch of edge of the paper (See Fig. 20), 
leaving a margin on all four sides of the mat. For 
weavers, cut from paper of harmonious tone, strips equal 
in width to the slashes in the mat. 

Variations of the simple over one, under one weave 
add interest to the work and also give practice in number 

combinations such as over 
one, under two, etc. Work 
of this sort is used in many 
schools as a method of teach- 
ing number, the teacher dic- 
tating the combinations while 
the interest of the children 
centers in the new pattern 
which develops under their 
fingers. While such work has 
much to be said in its favor, 
it is open to criticism, espe- 
cially in the matter of dictation. All the children 
in any one group will not work with equal speed. 
Some will undoubtedly '' get behind " and others will 
lose time while waiting for the slow ones. Accidents 
are Kable to happen in individual cases. 

Many of these undesirable features may be eliminated 
while still retaining the valuable part of the work by 
writing the directions on the board instead of dictating 
them to the children. It then becomes a lesson in 
reading as well as in number. Each child is thrown 
more completely upon his own responsibihty and can 






Fig. 20. 



FOLD 

— Detail of paper weav- 
ing. 



THE HOUSE PROBLEM 45 

proceed as rapidly and as steadily as his capacity permits. 
His rate of progress will often be a fair measure of his 
abiUty for independent thought and action, which is the 
real measure for successful teaching. 

As the hardest feature in this method is in keeping 
the right Hne and not repeating or omitting any direc- 
tion, a social spirit may be encouraged by allowing the 
children to work in groups and take turns in keeping 
the place while the others work. In one first grade where 
this plan was in vogue the children discovered a book 
on the teacher's desk which contained numerous designs, 
many of them much more intricate than she would have 
attempted to use as classwork. Their instinct for ex- 
ploration led them to struggle with the directions until 
they had worked out some designs which would have 
proved dismal failures had they been attempted as class 
lessons. In this instance those who belonged to the 
persevering group were happy in a new-found sense of 
strength and independence, while the others had ac- 
compHshed as much as any would have done under the 
dictation method. 

Furniture. ^The problem of furniture for the school 
playhouse has been discussed in numerous publications, 
and nearly every writer on the subject of primary hand- 
work offers suggestions on this topic. The suggestions 
include a range in materials and processes from very 
simple foldings in paper to quite complex processes in 
reeds and rafha and methodical construction in wood. 

Among the various materials and styles in common 
use, folded paper furniture has the advantage of being 
quickly made. The process is of sufficient interest to 



46 . PRIMARY HANDWORK 

little children to hold their attention, and in order to 
secure the desired result they must hear the directions 
intelligently and obey them promptly. These are de- 
sirable habits to form. It is quite possible, however, for 
the work to be done in a very formal, mechanical way, 
in which the children merely follow directions, often 
bhndly, without any clear purpose and very little 
thought. Success or failure is due largely to chance ; 
for, if by accident even a good worker " loses out " on a 
direction, his work is at a standstill until special help is 
given. He is unable to proceed because he does not 
know what to do next. There is very little opportunity 
in such a process for independent thought or action. 
It is not self-directed activity. 

A second objection to paper furniture is its lack of 
stabihty. Paper which is pliable enough to fold readily 
will not hold its own weight long when made into fur- 
niture, and very soon becomes wobbly. To overcome 
this tendency to wobble, heavier papers are often used 
and new comphcations arise. Heavy papers do not 
fold readily without scoring. Scoring demands con- 
siderable accuracy of measurement — often to a degree 
beyond the power of a six-year-old. The stiff papers, 
being hard pressed, are harder to paste, and neat work 
is often an impossibility, unless considerable assistance is 
given. 

It is possible to make satisfactory furniture in a great 
variety of styles from stiff paper, and the processes in- 
volve some excellent practice in measurement and design. 
The processes necessary to obtain these satisfactory 
results are, however, beyond the ability of children in 



THE HOUSE PROBLEM 47 

the lower grades. Even fairly satisfactory results are 
impossible unless an undue amount of assistance is 
given by the teacher. In actual practice, where stiff 
paper is used a few of the best workers in the class are 
helped to make the few pieces needed in the playhouse 
and the unhappy failures of the rest of the class are 
promptly consigned to the wastebasket. 

Very pretty furniture may be made from reeds and 
raffia, but the processes are too difficult to be success- 
fully performed by small children. The reeds do not 
lend themselves readily to constructions small enough 
to suit the average playhouse, and the larger pieces are 
out of proportion to the other features of the house. 

The use of wood overcomes the most serious of the 
objections to be made to other materials, besides being 
the material most commonly used in " real " furniture. 
Wooden furniture is stable, and a great variety of pro- 
cesses in construction are possible without introducing 
complications which prevent independent work on the 
part of the little people. 

The processes necessary to the construction of very 
simple yet satisfactory wooden furniture may be reduced 
to measuring one dimension, sawing off, and nailing on. 
Measuring one dimension is quite within the powers of 
six-year-olds. Sawing of is not difficult if soft lumber 
is used, and it becomes very simple by the help of the 
miter box. Nailing on is difficult if the nails must be 
driven into the edges of thin boards, but if thin boards 
are nailed to thick boards, nails may " go crooked " 
without serious consequences, and the process becomes 
quite easy. These processes have the advantage of 



48 



PRIMARY HANDWORK 




Fig. 21. — Furniture from wood blocks. 

being particularly fascinating to small boys, in contrast 
to the girlish character of many forms of primary hand- 
work. (See Figs. 21 and 22.) 

Processes. ■ — For the sake of convenience and clear- 
ness in these directions it will be assumed that the 
class is provided with pieces of wood two inches square 




Fig. 22. — Furniture from wood blocks. 



THE HOUSE PROBLEM 49 

which will be referred to as 2 X 2. Also with thin wood 
in a variety of widths from i in. to 6 in. Material of 
other dimensions would serve the purpose equally well, 
and for many of the parts odd pieces from the scrap box 
will answer every purpose. The directions are intended 
only to suggest how to proceed, and it is left to the teacher 
to adapt them to the material and conditions with which 
she works. 
(i) To make a chair. 

Use 2 X 2 for seat and thin wood 2 in. wide for back. 
Children should measure and decide how much to saw 
off from strip of 2 X 2 in order to make a square block 
or cube for the seat. They should estimate the length 
of the back of the chair, then measure and saw off the 
thin wood needed. Nail the back piece to the cube and 
finish with a coat of water-color paint or color with 
crayon. An armchair may be made by the addition 
of shorter pieces of thin wood to the sides of the chair. 

(2) To make table with pedestal. 

Use 2X2 for pedestal. Use thin wood 6 in. wide for 
top. Use thin wood 4 in. wide for base. Measure and 
saw off 3 in. of 2X2 for pedestal. Measure enough of 
the 6 in. wood to make a square top and enough of the 
4 in. wood to make a square base. Do not tell the chil- 
dren what they can discover for themselves. They 
should decide how high the table ought to be and how 
large to suit the size of the room. Nail the square 
pieces to the two ends of the pedestal. Finish by same 
method used for chairs. 

(3) For ordinary table. 

Use thin wood for top. Use \ X 2 for legs. Measure 



50 . PRIMARY HANDWORK 

and saw off pieces needed. Measure places for legs about 
one inch from corner of top in order to allow an overhang. 
Children frequently put the legs flush with the edge of 
the table, which gives a clumsy appearance. Nail 
through the top with a comparatively long nail. 

(4) To make a double bed. 

Use wood I to I in. thick for body. Use thin wood 
of corresponding width for head and foot boards. Class 
or individual workers should decide on dimensions for 
different parts and height of body of bed from the floor. 

(5) For single bed. 

Proceed as for double bed, using narrow pieces of wood, 
or use six or seven inches of 2 x 2 for body of bed and 
make head and foot boards after the style of chair back. 

(6) Dressing table. 

Decide upon dimensions needed. Use 2 X 2 for body. 
Use thin wood of equal width for back. Use tinfoil for 
mirror. Indicate drawers with pencil lines. 

(7) Couch. 

Use piece of 2 x 2 of desired length and make couch 
cover of appropriate material, or add back and arms of 
thin wood to piece of 2 x 2 and finish to match other 
furniture. 

(8) Piano. 

Use wood f or I in. thick for body. Nail on piece 
I X J for keyboard. Draw keys on paper and paste on 
keyboard. 

(9) Kitchen stove. 

Use 2 X 4 or any scrap or empty box of appropriate 
size and shape. Color black with crayon. Add chalk 
marks or bits of tinfoil to indicate doors and lids. Make 



THE HOUSE PROBLEM 



51 



hot-water tank of paper. Pieces of reed, wire, or twigs 
covered with tinfoil make good water pipes. Macaroni 
sticks and lemonade straws have served this purpose. 

Clay Furnishings. — For such articles as the kitchen 
sink, the bathtub, and other bathroom fittings clay is 




Fig. 23. — Home of White Cloud, the Pueblo girl. Second grade. Colum- 
bia, Missouri. 



a satisfactory material. These articles may be modeled 
by the children, in as good an imitation of the real fittings 
as they are able to make. Various methods may be 
used for holding the kitchen sink and the bathroom basin 
in place, and it is much better for the children to evolve 
one of their own than to follow the teacher's dictation 



52 ' PRIMARY HANDWORK 

from the start. If they meet serious diflficulties, a sug- 
gestion from her may help clear the way. Two long 
nails driven into the wall will give a satisfactory bracket 
on which the sink may rest. Two short nails may be 
driven through the back while the clay is moist and 
may serve also as a foundation for faucets. The 
basin, bathtub, and stool may each be built sohd to the 
floor. 

The teakettle and other stove furniture may be 
modeled in clay. Electric light bulbs of clay sus- 
pended by cords from the ceiling have a realistic air. 
Paper shades of appropriate color add to the general 
effect. 

Miscellaneous furnishings. 

Bedding. — Paper or cloth may be used for bedding, 
as circumstances suggest. If interest in real things is 
strong, the making of the sheets and pillow cases offers 
an opportunity for some practice with the needle. If 
time is limited, paper may be used. 

Curtains. — ■ Curtains also may be made from either 
paper or regular curtain material. If paper is used, it 
should be very soft, such as plain Japanese napkins. 
Scraps of plain net or scrim are most desirable. Some 
child is apt to contribute a piece of large-patterned lace 
curtain, but the tactful teacher will avoid using it if 
possible, and direct the children's thoughts toward a 
better taste in draperies. 

Portieres may be made of cloth, of knotted cords, or 
chenille. 

Couch pillows may be made from cloth or may be 
woven on a small card. 



THE HOUSE PROBLEM 



53 



Towels for the bathroom may be woven from crochet 
cotton. 

The fireplace may be made of cardboard marked off 
and colored to represent brick. A shallow box may be 
made to serve the purpose. Cut out the opening for 
the grate and lay real sticks on andirons made from soft 
wire ; or draw a picture of blazing fire and put inside. 
The fireplace may also be made of clay. Pebbles may 
be pressed into the clay if a stone fireplace is desired. 
If clay is used, several small nails should be driven into 
the wall before the fireplace is built up, to hold the clay 
in place after it dries. 

Bookcases may be made of cardboard, using a box 
construction, and glued to the wall. Or a block of wood 
about one inch thick may be used. In either case mark 
off the shelves and books with pencil Hnes, and color the 
backs of the books with crayon. 

The Stairway. — In a two-story house the hardest 
problem will usually be the stairs. Some good work in 
number may be done while finding out how many steps 
will be needed and where the stairway must begin in 
order to reach the second floor in comfort. Even quite 
small children can deal with this problem if presented in 
a simple way. For example, if the box or room is ten 
inches high, how many steps i in. wide and i in. high will 
be needed, and how far out into the room will they come ? 
The children can work out the plan on the blackboard. 
Measurements may be modified to suit the ability of the 
class and the needs of the room. 

The variety of possible constructions in building the 
staircase corresponds to the varying abihty of classes. 



34 



PRIMARY HANDWORK 



A strip of paper may be folded back and forth and made 
to serve with least mature classes. This paper stair will 
sag unless it rests on a board or piece of stiff pasteboard. 
A substantial stairway may be made by sawing two thin 
boards for supports, as in Fig. 24, and naiHng on steps 
of thin wood or cardboard. There is usually one boy in 
every first grade who is capable of as difficult a piece of 
handwork as this. He is apt, also, to be the boy who takes 
least interest in the general work of the class, and often 

it is possible to arouse him to 
special effort through some 
such problem. The stairway 
may be made of heavy card- 
board with a construction 
similar to that just described, 
but this requires pasting in- 
stead of naihng and is much 
more difficult for little chil- 
dren. 

The Roof. — ■ The making of the roof is another part of 
the house building which may often be given into the 
special care of the two or three over-age pupils who need 
special problems. The plan which they evolve from their 
study of the needs of the case will usually be of greater 
value to them, even though it may not be the best that 
could be suggested. 

The roof may be made of wood" as a base, with either 
wood or cardboard shingles tacked on in proper fashion ; 
or it may be made of cardboard with the shingles merely 
indicated by hues made with crayon. If the wood base 
is used, wood gables may be made for sides or ends of 



Fig. 24. — Detail of stairway. 



THE HOUSE PROBLEM 



55 



the house. To these, long boards may be nailed to form a 
solid roof. Shingles two inches long by about one inch 
wide may be cut from cardboard or very thin wood and 
tacked to the boards. The children should be spurred 
to study the roofs of houses and find out how the shingles 




Fig. 



Box house, showing roof. Built by summer class, Teachers 
College, New York, 



are arranged, and discover for themselves, if possible, the 
secret of successful shinghng. 

A cardboard roof is in many ways easier to build. 
In a house similar to the one shown in Fig. 25 two 
gables are used, and the roof slopes to front and back. 
The framework can be very simply made. At the two 
gable ends place uprights made of two pieces of wood 



56 



PRIMARY HANDWORK 



joined in the form of an 
inverted T. (See Fig. 26.) 
These should be nailed to 
the box. A ridgepole may 
then be nailed to the 
upper ends of the up- 
rights. If the house is 
not large, no other frame- 1 
work will be necessary. 
If the slope of the roof 

is long enough to allow the cardboard to sag, Hght 
strips of wood extending from the ridgepole to the 



Fig. 26. — Detail of gable. 




Fig. 27. — Colonial kitchen. Columbia, Missouri. 



outer edge of the box may be added. If a single 
piece of cardboard of sufficient size is available, it 



THE HOUSE PROBLEM 57 

may be scored ^ and bent at the proper place and laid 
over the ridgepole, with the edges extending beyond the 
box to form the eaves. Or, two pieces may be used, one 
for each slope of the roof, each piece being tacked to the 
ridgepole. Chimneys may be made from paper and 
colored to represent bricks or stone. 

The outside of the house may be treated in several 
ways. It may be sided after the manner of frame houses 
by tacking on strips of paper or cardboard lapped in the 
proper fashion. It may be covered with paper marked 
in horizontal lines to represent siding, in irregular spaces 
to represent stone, or in regular spaces to represent brick, 
and finished in the appropriate color. Or, a coat of 
paint or stain may be apphed directly to the box. 

VARIATIONS IN HOUSE PROBLEM 

A playhouse for its own sake is a justifiable project for 
primary children and one which may be repeated several 
times without exhausting its possibilities. Each time it 
is repeated the emphasis will fall on some new feature, 
and the children will wish to do more accurate work. 

In the lowest grades very simple houses of one or two 
rooms may be built for story-book friends, such as the 
" Three Bears " or " Little Red Riding Hood," with 
only such furniture as the story suggests. In intermedi- 
ate grades the house may have an historical motive and 
illustrate home Ufe in primitive times or in foreign coun- 
tries, such as a colonial kitchen in New England, a pioneer 
cabin on the Western prairies, a Dutch home, a Japanese 

^In scoring cardboard cut about halfway through the board on the 
outside of the fold. 



58 PRIMARY HANDWORK 

home, etc. In upper grades it may become a serious 
study in house decoration. 

As the motive for making the house changes, the char- 
acter and quality of its furnishings will change. The 
block furniture described above will give way to more 
accurate models in either wood or paper. Some excellent 
suggestions for paper furniture for advanced work may 
be found in the Manual Training Magazine. 

As skill in construction increases, a wish for something 
more realistic than the box construction will arise, and the 
elements of house framing will be studied with great 
eagerness. 

The House of the Three Bears. (See Fig. 28.) — 
This house was made early in the year by a class of first- 
grade children. The walls were papered in plain brown 
paper. The carpets were woven mats of paper. The 
chairs, table, and beds were made according to the methods 
already described in the playhouse outline. The stove 
and the doll were contributed. The bears were modeled 
in clay. The children played with the house and its 
contents throughout the year. The bears were broken 
and made over many times — a process which not only 
afforded great pleasure, but also developed considerable 
skill in modeling. 

Another Bears' House. — This house, shown in Frontis- 
piece, was made in the spring, near the end of the school 
year, by a class of first-grade children all of whom were 
under seven and many of whom were very immature. 

The story of the Three Bears was taken up after Christ- 
mas, told and retold, read, and dramatized by the chil- 
dren. Teddy bears were brought to school. Many bears 



THE HOUSE PROBLEM 59 

were modeled in clay, each child making the set of three 
many times. 

The children laid off spaces on the table for individ- 




FiG. 28. — House for the Three Bears. First grade. Columbia, Missouri. 

ual Bears' houses and made furniture for these as their 
fancy prompted. The furniture was made of wood after 
the general style described above. Later, carpets were 



6o 



PRIMARY HANDWORK 



woven for these individual playhouses. Each carpet 
was woven to a given dimension, making it necessary to 
use the rule. This was their introduction to the rule as 
a tool for measuring. Every child in a class of forty 
made one or more pieces of furniture and wove one or 




Fig. 29. — Cornstalk house. 



Built by second-grade class. Franklin, 
Indiana. 



more small carpets from rags. Nearly all made some 
bedding. 

Later, four boxes were secured and arranged as a 
house. ' The openings for doors were marked off during 
school time, but were sawed out by a few children who 
remained during the noon intermission. This is the 



THE HOUSE PROBLEM 6 1 

only part of the work which was not done during regular 
class time. The papering was done by two or three of 
the most capable children, while the rest were deeply 
absorbed in weaving. All made borders. Certain 
borders were selected for the house, and several children 
worked together to make enough of the same pattern for 
one room. Selections were then made from the carpets 
and furniture already made by the children. 

The roof was made chiefly by one boy who " knew a 
good way to make it." The porches were also indi- 
vidual projects by pupils who had ideas on the subject 
and were allowed to work them out. 

The children became very familiar with every phase of 
the story and attacked any expression of it with the feel- 
ing, '' That's easy." They wrote stories, i.e. sentences 
about bears. Each child at the close of the year could 
write on the blackboard a story of two or more sentences. 
They made pictures of bears in all sorts of postures with 
colored crayon and from free-hand cuttings. They 
modeled the bears in clay over and over again, keeping 
up a large family in spite of many accidents. 

Cooperative Building. — Figures ii, 12, and 13 show 
three rooms of a four-room house built by the first and 
second grades working together. The living room and bed- 
room were furnished by first-grade children. The din- 
ing room, kitchen, and bath were furnished by the 
second grade. Four boxes were used. (See diagram, page 
35, Fig. 14.) Each room, except the bath, was a sep- 
arate box. After a general plan had been agreed upon 
by the teachers, the boxes were carried to the several 
rooms and each class worked quite independently. 



62 



PRIMARY HANDWORK 




THE HOUSE PROBLEM 63 

When the rooms were finished, they were assembled on 
a table in the hall and the roof put on. 

The Flour Mill. — The flour mill, shown in Fig. 30, 
was built in connection with a study of the general 
subject of milling by a fourth-grade class. The class 
visited a flour mill. They were shown the various ma- 
chines, and the function of each was explained to them. 
They made hasty sketches of the machines and a rough 
diagram of their arrangement on the floors. They got 
the dimensions of the floors and height of the ceiling. 
An empty box was remodeled to approximate the dimen- 
sions of the building. Small representations of the ma- 
chines were made and placed in the proper relation to 
each other. No attempt was made to show more than 
the external proportions in the small representation. The 
work served its best purpose in keeping the children think- 
ing definitely about what they had seen. The attempt to 
express their thoughts in tangible form deepened the 
mental impression, even though the tangible results 
were crude and lacked many details. 

The conveyer being of special interest, two boys 
worked out a larger model which illustrated the band- 
bucket process. This is shown in Fig. 30, at the 
right of the mill. Small cups were made of soft 
tin and fastened to a leather strap. The strap was 
fastened around two rods, placed one above the other. 
The lower rod was turned by a crank fastened on the 
outside of the box. Two or three brads driven into the 
lower rod caught into holes in the strap and prevented 
slipping. The machine successfully hoisted grain from 
the lower box to one fastened higher up, but not shown 



64 ' PRIMARY HANDWORK 

in the picture. The model was very crude in its work- 
manship, but it showed the abiUty of fourth-grade boys 
to successfully apply an important principle in mechanics, 
and it gave opportunity for their ingenuity to express 
itself. The work was done with such tools and materials 
as the boys could provide for themselves, and without 
assistance other than encouraging suggestions from the 
teacher. This bit of construction accompanied a broad 
study of the subject of milling, including the source 
and character of the raw materials, the processes in- 
volved, the finished products and their value. 



CHAPTER VI 
THE VILLAGE STREET 

Playing store is a game of universal interest. Making 
a play store is a fascinating occupation. These are 
factors which cannot be overlooked in any scheme of 
education which seeks to make use of the natural 
activities of children. 

The downtown store stands to the children as the 
source of all good things which are to be bought with 
pennies. It is usually the first place outside the home 
with which they become famihar, and its processes are 
sure to be imitated in their play. In their play they 
not only repeat the processes of buying and seUing, but 
try to reproduce in miniature what they regard as the 
essential features of the real store. 

If they are allowed to play this fascinating game in 
school, it may, by the teacher's help, become at once more 
interesting and more worth while. Curiosity may be 
aroused through questions concerning what is in the store, 
where it came from, how it got there, what was done to 
make it usable, how it is measured, and what it is worth. 
In seeking answers to these questions, the fields of geog- 
raphy, history, and arithmetic may be explored as exten- 
sively as circumstances warrant and a whole curriculum is 
F 65 



66 



PRIMARY HANDWORK 




THE VILLAGE STREET 67 

built up in a natural way. After such study, stores cease 
to be the source of the good things they offer for sale. 
The various kinds of merchandise take on a new interest 
when the purchaser knows something of their history, 
and a new value when he knows something of the labor 
which has gone into their manufacture. 

Being a subject of universal interest, it may be adapted 
to the conditions of the various grades. It being also 
impossible to exhaust the possibihties of the subject in 
any single presentation, it may profitably be repeated 
with a change of emphasis to suit the development of the 
class. For example, in the second grade, the study of the 
street is chiefly a classification of the various commodi- 
ties which are essential to our daily Hfe, and a few of the 
main facts of interest concerning their origin. Those a 
Uttle older are interested in the processes of manufacture 
and the geography of their sources. In playing store, 
weights and measures, the changing of money, and the 
making of bills take on an interest impossible in the 
old-fashioned method of presenting these phases of 
arithmetic. Discussions and narratives supply oral 
language work, and descriptions, letters, and notes pro- 
vide material for written exercises. 

The class may be divided into groups, each group con- 
tributing one store to the street, or the attention of the 
whole class may be centered on one store at a time, as the 
immediate conditions suggest. If the former method is 
used, as each store is finished it may be used as subject 
matter for the entire class, while the important facts 
concerning it are considered. The first permits a broader 
scope ; the second a more exhaustive study. In either 



68 



PRIMARY HANDWORK 




case visits to the real 
stores studied are im- 
portant supplements to 
the work. 

General Directions. — 
Discuss the stores on a 
village street. Which 
are most important ? 
Why? Decide how 
many stores the class 
can build, and choose 
those most necessary to 
a community. 

If self-organized 
groups^ are allowed to 
choose the part they are 
to work out, both inter- 
est and harmony are 
promoted and leadership 
stimulated. 

Use a box for each 
store. Each group is 
usually able to provide 
its own box. Paper in- 
side of box with clean 
paper, or put on a coat 
of fresh paint. Make 
appropriate shelving and 
counters of thin wood. 

1 See Scott's '' Social Educa- 
tion." 



THE VILLAGE STREET 69 

Stock the store with samples of appropriate merchan- 
dise as far as possible. Supplement with the best repre- 
sentations the children can make. They should be left 
to work out the problem for themselves to a large extent, 
the teacher giving a suggestion only when they show a 
lack of ideas. 

Suggestions for Details of Representation. — Clay 
Modeling. — Clay may be used to model fruits and vege- 
tables, bottles and jugs for the grocery ; bread, cake, 
and pies for the bakery ; different cuts of meat for the 
butcher shop ; horses for the blacksmith shop and for 
delivery wagons. Clay representations may be made 
very realistic by coloring with crayon. 

Canned Goods. — Paper cylinders on which labels are 
drawn before pasting serve well for canned goods. 
Cylindrical blocks may be cut from broom sticks or 
dowel rods and wrapped in appropriately labeled covers. 

Cloth. — Rolls of various kinds of cloth should be col- 
lected for the dry goods store. Figures may be cut 
from fashion plates and mounted for the " Ready to 
Wear " department. 

Hats. — Hats may be made for the milHnery store 
from any of the materials commonly used. This is a 
good way for girls to develop their ingenuity and re- 
sourcefulness. 

The Store Front. — The front of each store may be made 
of either wood or cardboard, the spaces for doors and 
windows being left open that the merchandise may be 
conveniently handled. Brick or stone fronts, second- 
story windows, offices, etc., may all be indicated as artis- 
tically as the capacity of the class permits by the use of 



10 



PRIMARY HANDWORK 



colored crayons. The sign is an important feature and 
should stimulate an interest in well-made lettering. 

Additional Projects. — In addition to representations 
of retail shops, various industries, such as the carpenter 
shop, blacksmith shop, flour mill, ice plant, and other 
familiar industries, may be represented. Cooperative 



mmmmmfammm. 



jmma., 



f i4» 



^*IU. 



Hff^ ^ 



Fig. 33. — A grocery. Fourth grade. 



institutions, such as the post office and fire depart- 
ment, should be included in the study. 

Excursions. — Wherever possible, the plant should be 
visited by the class. Before making the visit, the class 
should discuss what they expect to see, and go prepared 
to find out definite things. Each child should have at 
least one question which he is to ask, or one item of 



THE VILLAGE STREET 7 1 

information for which he is to be responsible to the class 
on the return. Often the visit is more worth while to 
the class after they have tried to make a representation 
from what they already know and from what they can 
read on the subject. They are then more conscious of 
their needs and more alive to the important elements 
than when they are merely seeing a new thing which is 
to a great extent foreign to their experience. If they 
make the visit first, they are apt to feel the need of 
another when they attempt to work out their represen- 
tation. If they make a representation first, they are 
quite sure to be dissatisfied with it and want to make 
another after they have made the visit. In either case 
their consciousness of need is a measure of growth. 

Correlation. — While the building of a store is in 
progress the study of the sources and processes of man- 
ufacture of the various articles of merchandise will sup- 
ply valuable subject matter in several fields. 

English. — Books containing information on the sub- 
ject will be read with a definite purpose and more 
than ordinary interest. Especially if the group method 
is used, will the members of a group be proud to bring 
to the class interesting items concerning their particular 
part of the work. These narratives and descriptions 
may be made excellent practice in either oral or written 
English and will be of the sort Dewey characterizes as 
" having something to say rather than having to say 
something." 

Geography. — This study may also enter as deeply 
into the field of geography as the development of the 
class warrants. It will be geography of a vital sort. 



72 ' PRIMARY HANDWORK 

How these things are brought to us touches the field 
of transportation, creating an interest in ships and 
railroad trains, pack mules and express wagons. 

History. — The study of the process of manufacture 
opens up the field of industrial history, and in this, as in 
the geography, the study is Hmited only by the capacity 
of the class. 

Number. — In the field of number the possibiHties 
are also unlimited, in studying the weights and meas- 
ures used for different commodities, the actual prices 
paid for these things, and the usual quantities pur- 
chased. 

Playing store will involve the making of bills, the 
changing of money, and the measuring of merchandise. 
Different pupils may take turns acting as salesmen or 
cashier. The common practices of business life should 
be followed as closely as possible, only in this case each 
purchaser should make out his own bills. Actual 
purchase sHps may be brought from home and used in 
number lessons. 

An inventory of the stock may be taken and will 
supply excellent practice in addition and multiphcation. 
After the example of real stores, a stock-taking sale at 
reduced rates may be advertised. The writer answered 
such an advertisement by a third grade and asked how 
much could be purchased for one dollar. Pencils were 
busy at once, and a variety of combinations suggested. 
One pupil was quickly called to account by his mates for 
offering only ninety-five cents' worth of merchandise for 
the dollar. By these and numerous other exercises 
which will suggest themselves to Hvely children and wide- 



THE VILLAGE STREET 



73 



awake teachers a vast amount of vital subject matter 
may. be dealt with in a natural way, quite on the level 
of the child's experience and interest. 

Art. — The art side also may receive due attention in 
the general proportioning and arrangement of the stores, 



11 e ' 




-rx^ 






pihct.t6( GROCERY 






1 


»-.-/„.. ..,.-^=^'»/*«a^s:::Sf«^ r- i-.- 


< :^.*M 


1 - - - i_.... ■ -i-rl 



Fig. 34. — A grocery. Third grade. Columbia, Missouri. 



in the modeling of certain features from clay, as enu- 
merated above, in the making of labels for boxes and cans, 
in the writing of signs and advertisements, and in the 
color combinations. These features are to a great ex- 
tent incidental to other problems just as the use of good 



74 - PRIMARY HANDWORK 

taste is incidental to all the affairs of life and should 
receive corresponding emphasis. 

ILLUSTRATIONS 

Figure 32 shows about half the stores built by one 
third-grade class. Some of the subject matter drawn 
from the various stories was as follows : in connection 
with the grocery, a study of the source of various arti- 
cles of food with oral and written descriptions of pro- 
cesses of manufacture ; the common measures used in 
the grocery, and ordinary amounts purchased. 

In connection with the meat market, the names of 
various kinds of meat, the animals from which they are 
obtained, and the part of the animal which furnishes 
certain cuts; as, for example, ham, bacon, chops. 
The current prices and approximate quantity needed 
for a meal made practical number work. 

The bakery called for an investigation of the processes 
of bread making and a study of the material used. In all 
of the processes the teacher had opportunity to stress 
the necessity for proper sanitation. 

In connection with the dry goods store, the distin- 
guishing characteristics of cotton, wool, linen, and silk 
were emphasized and illustrated by the samples col- 
lected for the store and by the clothing worn by the chil- 
dren. Common problems in measuring cloth enlivened 
the number lessons. 

The millinery store disclosed considerable ingenuity 
in the field of hat manufacture, and a lively business in 
doll hats was carried on for some time. 



THE VILLAGE STREET 



75 



In connection with the post office, registered letters, 
dead letters, money orders, rural free delivery, etc., were 
discussed, and the advantages of cooperation touched 
upon. 




Fig. 35. — A dry goods store. Third grade. 

The other stores of the village street offer further 
opportunity for becoming better acquainted with the 
common things which lie close at hand and touch our 
daily lives. 



76 - 



PRIMARY HANDWORK 




CHAPTER VII 
SAND TABLES AND WHAT TO DO WITH THEM 

A SAND table should be considered one of the indis- 
pensable furnishings of every schoolroom. Its pos- 
sibiKties are many and varied. It may be used merely 
as a means of recreation and the children allowed to play 
in the sand, digging and building as fancy suggests. Or 
it may be used as the foundation for elaborate repre- 
sentations, carefully planned by the teacher, laboriously 
worked out by the children, and extravagantly admired 
by the parents on visitors' day. While both of these 
uses may serve worthy ends on certain occasions, the 
most valuable function of the sand table strikes a happy 
medium between the two, as means of illustrating and 
emphasizing various features of the daily lessons. In 
this capacity the laborious efforts of the show problem 
on the one hand and purposeless play of the other are 
both avoided. In this capacity the work on the sand 
table goes along hand in hand with the regular work in 
geography, history, language, or any subject in which it 
is possible through an illustration to teach more effec- 
tively. 

The purpose of this work is not so much to produce 
fine representations as to help the children to clarify 
and strengthen their ideas through the effort to express 

77 



78 PRIMARY HANDWORK 

them in concrete form. The value Kes in the develop- 
ment which comes to the children while they work. The 
technique of processes of construction is of secondary 
importance, though careless work ought never to be 
permitted. The completed project has little value after 
it has served its purpose as an illustration and may be 
quickly destroyed to make way for the next project. 
For this reason emphasis is laid on the general effect 
rather than the detail of construction. The work should 
be done well enough to serve the purpose, but time should 
not be spent on unnecessary details which do not add to 
the value as an illustration. In most cases speed is an 
important element. The project should be completed 
while the subject it illustrates is under discussion, if it is 
to be of most service. The first essential is that the 
work shall be done wholly by the children. The teacher 
may by skillful questions help them to build up in im- 
agination the project they intend to work out, so that 
they may work with a definite purpose. She may some- 
times suggest improved methods of working out various 
features when the improvements will add to the value 
of the illustration, but she should seldom, if ever, 
plan a project definitely or dictate the method of 
procedure. 

Not least among the possible benefits to be derived from 
work of this kind is the development of resourcefulness. 
The necessity for expressing an idea in concrete form with 
whatever materials are at hand often calls for consider- 
able ingenuity. Ability of this sort will show itself only 
when the children are expressing their ideas with utmost 
freedom and feel the responsibility for the success of their 



SAND TABLES AND WHAT TO DO WITH THEM 79 

work. The more earnestly the children try to express 
their ideas, the greater will be their development. The 
teacher should feel that she is hindering the growth of 
the children and defrauding them of their legitimate 
opportunity for development when she allows an over- 
anxiety for tangible and showy results to make her take 
the responsibility upon herself. 

The details of method are best presented through a 
detailed description of typical illustrations actually 
worked out in the classroom. 

A SAND-TABLE FARM — HOME LIFE IN THE COUNTRY 

The study of home Hfe as a general subject will include 
'' our home " and the homes of other people who live 
under different conditions. To the town child the coun- 
try will often be somewhat familiar and hold the second 
place in his interest. In the country school the farm 
may often be the best place to begin. 

Various questions will arise as soon as it is decided 
to make a sand-table farm, the answers to which will be 
governed by the habits of the locaHty. What sort of 
farm shall we have? Shall we raise stock, fruit, corn, 
wheat, vegetables, or a httle of everything ? What shall 
we need to plant in each case, and in what proportion ? 
How much pasture land shall we need? What build- 
ings ? What machinery ? 

Fences. — As soon as the question of crops and the 
division of the table into fields is settled, the problem of 
fencing presents itself. What sort of fence is needed, 
wire, boards, pickets, rails, or hedge? How far apart 
shall the posts be set, how tall should they be, and how 



8o 



PRIMARY HANDWORK 




SAND TABLES AND WHAT TO DO WITH THEM 8 1 



many will be needed ? How many boards ? How wide ? 
How long ? How many wires ? 

The making of the fencing will supply material for one 
or more number lessons. Various materials may be used. 

Twigs may be cut to given lengths and set in concrete 
(clay) posts. 

For wire fence, cut 
posts from small 
wooden sticks. Drive 
small tacks in each post 
— one for each wire. 
Use fine spool wire or 
wire raveled from fly 
screen. Twist wires 
once around each tack, 
or drive the tacks in 
firmly so that the wire 
is held by the head of 
the tack. This is not 
an easy fence for very 
Httle children to make. 
To make hoard fence. 
Cut posts required 
length, and decide upon distance between posts. Make 
boards of thin strips of wood or of pasteboard. Nail boards 
to posts with tacks or small brads. This is a very easy 
fence to make and gives some good exercise in measuring. 
Rail fences may be made from toothpicks or burnt 
matches. 

Picket fence for the dooryard may be made on wooden 
foundation with cardboard pickets. 










FOLD 
















I 






i '■ 
Pi 






























O 












FO 


U 


3 














1 





Fig. 40. — Detail of chicken fence. 



82 PRIMARY HANDWORK 

Hedge fence should be made from some fine-leafed 
plant. Cedar twigs serve well. 

Chicken fence may be cut from paper as per illustration. 
Fold paper several times, lengthwise. Cut across the 
fold as indicated by arrows. Stretch lengthwise as 
shown in Fig. 40, a and h. 

Buildings. — The class should decide on the buildings 
needed. Each building should be assigned to a group of 
two or three workers. Each group should be held 
responsible for its contribution and should work out its 
problem with as Httle help as possible. If the children 
are able to plan a barn and make it, even though it is a 
very crude affair, more has been accomphshed than if a 
very cunning structure had been made after plans, 
dictated and closely supervised by the teacher. 

Wood is the best building material for general use. 

Pasteboard serves well, but it is less substantial. It 
is also harder to cut and paste heavy cardboard than it is 
to saw and nail thin wood. 

Clay may be used for all buildings which are commonly 
made of concrete. 

Stock. — The different kinds of animals needed on the 
farm and the number of each will furnish profitable sub- 
ject matter for class discussion. The animals may be 
modeled from clay. While the animals will of necessity 
be very large in proportion to the acreage of the farm, 
attention should be directed to the relative proportions 
between horses and hogs, cattle and sheep. Differences 
of this sort do not trouble little people, as their work is 
sure to show. The point should be stressed only 
sufficiently to help them to see a httle more clearly 



SAND TABLES AND WHAT TO DO WITH THEM 83 

and express their ideas a little more adequately each 
time they try. The accuracy of the result is important 
only as an index that the children are steadily develop- 
ing in power to see and do, and gaining self-reliance. 

The Modeling Process. — The best method seems to be 
simply to begin, and, for example, model as good a horse 
as possible ; then discuss the results, note a few serious 
defects, and try again, endeavoring to correct them. 
Encourage rapid work which gives the general propor- 
tions of the animal in the rough. Beginners are apt to 
waste time in a purposeless smoothing of the clay, in 
mere tactual enjoyment. Discourage the tendency to 
finish the details of a horse's head, for example, before 
the body has been modeled. Repeat the process as 
often as time and the interest of the children warrant, 
but be satisfied if the children are doing the best they 
can, even though the results are crude and not so 
good as some other class has produced. The children 
should always feel that the work is their own. For this 
reason the teacher's help in clay modeling should be 
through demonstration rather than by finishing touches 
to the child's work. Imitation is a strong instinct in httle 
children, and watching the teacher model a better horse 
than he can make will help a child to improve his own. 
One thing to be especially avoided is the attempt to 
bring every class to a uniform degree of excellence ac- 
cording to adult standards. Such an ideal encourages 
the giving of help in a way which hinders real develop- 
ment though it may produce immediate results. 

Trees. — This topic will call out a discussion of the 
uses of trees ; which trees are shade trees, which are cul- 



84 



PRIMARY HANDWORK 



tivated for their fruit, the distinguishing characteristics 
of the different varieties, and the ones best suited to this 
particular farm. 

Twigs from the real tree should be used wherever 
possible. In other cases the trees 
may be cut from paper. If a good 
green paper is not at hand, use 
drawing paper and color with 
crayons. A reaHstic effect is gained 
by cutting the tree from folded 
paper. (See Fig. 41.) Cut three 
pieces for each tree and paste 
together at the fold, then open 
out. Make the trunk long enough 
to be driven an inch or more into 
the sand. 

The making of the trees will fur- 
nish material for both art and 
nature study lessons. As far as 
circumstances permit the real trees 
should be studied, giving the chil- 
dren first-hand experience whether it be much or little. 
They should test the trees they cut by comparing them 
with real trees of the same variety. If this is impossible, 
the best pictures available should be used. (See notes 
on paper cutting.) 

Crops. — When the various parts of the farm are about 
ready, the fields may be sown. The sand should be 
made very wet before the seed is put in and sprinkled 
frequently (twice a day) , as the top dries off very quickly. 
After the seeds have germinated little sprinkling need be 




Fig. 41. 



Detail of paper 
tree. 



SAND TABLES AND WHAT TO DO WITH THEM 85 

done, as the roots will lind enough moisture in the wet 
sand underneath, and it is desirable to retard rather than 
hasten growth. If carefully managed, a table can be 
kept green for several weeks. 

For corn, check holes well into the sand and drop one 
grain into each hole. See that rows are straight and 
holes evenly spaced. 

Sow wheat, oats, barley, etc., very thickly, cover 
Hghtly with dry sand, and sprinkle. 

Timothy serves well for meadow and lawn, as it puts up 
a fine blade. Blue grass sends up a fine blade, but is very 
slow in germination. Clover does not make a velvety 
lawn, but a little in the pasture will make an interesting 
contrast. 

Vegetables may be planted in the garden. They will 
not develop to any great extent, but will serve to empha- 
size different habits in germination ; as, for example, the 
contrast between beans and corn. 

Correlation. — The opportunity for nature study 
afforded by the farm problem will prove one of its most 
interesting and valuable features as the progress in 
plant growth is noted from day to day. The farm prob- 
lem combines well with both language and art work in 
supplying vital material for both. In addition to the 
interesting discussions which naturally arise concerning 
the building and planting, a diary may be kept by each 
child. 

Keeping a Diary. — The date of planting may be 
noted and the date when each variety of seed first ap- 
pears above ground. With the larger seeds, as corn and 
beans, a seed may be dug up each day and examined, so 



S6 ' 



PRIMARY HANDWORK 



that the children may appreciate what is going on below 
ground. Drawings may be made of the seeds, showing 
the changes in appearance from day to day. After the 
seed leaves appear the daily growth may be measured 
and noted in the diary. After a few days seeds may be 
dug up again that the roots may be examined. At 




Fig. 42. 



An Eskimo village and The Overall Boys' Farm. 
Columbia, Missouri. 



First grade. 



various stages of growth different varieties of seeds 
may be dug up, laid upon a paper, and sketched by the 
children. The facts they note may be stated in simple, 
well- formed sentences, either oral or written or both. 

Art. — The sketching will serve well as the day's art 
lesson, though its chief value is in helping the children 
to see clearly. Their efforts will be crude but the teacher 
should constantly keep in mind that the chief aim is not 



SAND TABLES AND WHAT TO DO WITH THEM 



87 



to obtain line sketches. Its purpose is to help the chil- 
dren to a better appreciation of the plant through the 
effort put forth in making the sketch. The technique of 
the drawing should be emphasized only so far as it will 
help them express better what they see, and not to the 
point where they attempt to copy the teacher's strokes. 
The teacher should be satisfied if every child is doing 
his best and making steady progress, even though that 




Fig. 43. — An apple orchard. First grade. Columbia, Missouri. 

best may be crude and not up to the standard reached 
by the teacher who struggles for fine results. 

English. — For children who are able to write the 
diary offers a natural means of gaining experience in 
the use of common forms of punctuation ; as, for ex- 
ample, the writing of dates and the use of a comma in a 
series, as well as the punctuation of simple statements, 
in such entries as the following : 

April 15, 191 2. 

We planted the seeds on our farm to-day. 

We planted corn, wheat, oats, and beans. 



8S . PRIMARY HANDWORK 

In all work of this sort it is difficult to overestimate 
the advantage of separate sheets of paper over a notebook 
with sewed leaves, in the hands of the children. With 
the fresh sheet always comes an inspiration, no matter 
what failures have gone before. Poor pages can be done 
over when necessary, but do not haunt the workers with 
their discouraging suggestions, as in the use of a note- 
book. The leaves may be gathered together into a bind- 
ing of some sort. Even covers of plain brown wrapping 
paper can be made artistic with a simple border Hne well 
placed or a design cut from a paper of a different tone. 
Written work which culminates in an attractive booklet, 
however simple, seems more worth while than exercises 
written into a commonplace notebook or on scratch 
paper which goes to the wastebasket soon after the 
mistakes have been commented on. 

Number. — The farm problem also supplies abundant 
opportunity for gaining experience with number. In 
addition to the actual measurement of the materials 
used for fences and buildings, the scope may be widened, 
where conditions warrant, to include estimates and cal- 
culations of the amount of the material used. 

For example, how many inches or feet of wire will be 
needed to make a three- wire fence of given length ? How 
large a piece of cardboard will be needed to cut boards 
one fourth or one half inch wide for a four-board fence 
fifteen inches long ? 

These estimates may be translated, as far as the chil- 
dren are able to appreciate the connection, into quantities 
and values of the same material in real problems con- 
nected with real farms. It is important, however, to be 



SAND TABLES AND WHAT TO DO WITH THEM 89 

careful not to carry work of this sort so far beyond the 
experience of the children that it becomes wholly foreign 
and abstract to them. We are too apt to forget that it is 
experience and not objects, which is the vital factor in 
concreteness. 

In connection with the nature study a variety of num- 




FiG. 44. — Robinson Crusoe. Third grade. Columbia, Missouri. 

ber exercises grow out of the questions which the situa- 
tion prompts. As, for example, in connection with the 
corn crop : How many seeds were planted ? In how many 
rows? How many seeds in a row? How many came 
up ? How many failed to germinate ? How many more 
came up than failed ? If each good seed should produce 



90 



PRIMARY HANDWORK 



two ears of corn, how many would we have? What 
would they be worth at a given price ? etc. 

In an ungraded school, while the younger children 
might confine their efforts to counting as above, the 
older children might answer the same questions in terms 
of percentage and in the probable quantities on a real 
farm. The stock farm may be treated in the same way. 




Fig. 45. — Pueblo Indian village. Second grade. Columbia, Missouri. 

How many cows? How much milk will they give? 
What will it be worth? How much butter would it 
make? What will it cost to keep the cows? What is 
the farmer's profit? These and many other questions 
will suggest themselves to both teacher and pupils, once 
the subject is opened up. They will be practical ques- 
tions in so far as they touch the experience of the children 
in such a way as to appeal to them as real questions. 



SAND TABLES AND WHAT TO DO WITH THEM 9I 

Each individual teacher must decide how far and into 
what held it is worth while to lead any particular class. 

The Sand Table. — The various types of sand tables 
range all the way from the hardwood, zinc-Uned article, 
provided with a drainpipe, down to the homemade 
structure evolved from a goods box. 

The quality of the table does not greatly affect the 
quality of the work to be done on it, but there are several 
points which affect the convenience of the workers. The 
height of the table should allow the children to work 
comfortably when standing beside it. A long, narrow 
table is seldom as satisfactory as one more nearly square, 
but it should never be too wide for the children to reach 
the center easily. Any table with tight joints in the 
top and four- or five-inch boards fitted tightly around the 
edge will serve the purpose. The inside of the box should 
be painted to prevent warping and leaking. An " ocean 
blue " is a good color, as it makes a good background for 
islands. 

If no table is available, a goods box may be turned on 
its side, the top covered with oilcloth, and a frame, made 
from the cover of the box, fitted around the edge. The 
inside of the box may be used as a closet in which to store 
tools and materials, and a neat appearance given to the 
whole by a curtain of denim or other plain, heavy material. 

ILLUSTRATIVE PROBLEMS 

One of the most valuable uses of the sand table is in 
making illustrations for stories, historical events, and 
similar topics in which the relations between people and 
places is important. No definite rules can be laid down 



92- 



PRIMARY HANDWORK 



for working out such illustrations. The conditions under 
which they are made, the time to be devoted to the work, 
the importance of the subject, all affect both the nature 
and the quahty of the work. Any material which lends 
itself to the purpose should be called into service. 

The method of procedure is best set forth by describ- 
ing several problems as actually worked out by children. 




Fig. 46. — a home in Switzerland. Second grade. Columbia, Missouri. 

(i) Story of Columbus — First Grade. 

Materials Used. — Paper for cutting and folding, 
twigs for forests, acorns for tents, large piece of glass for 
ocean. 

Details of Illustration. — The" piece of glass was im- 
bedded in sand in the middle of the table ; one end of the 
table represented Spain, the other, America. The repre- 
sentation of Spain included : 

^' Castles in Spain " being large houses with many win- 



SAND TABLES AND WHAT TO DO WITH THEM 93 

dows in which the king and queen lived. They were 
cut from paper. 
Many people, cut from paper, including kings and queens 
and the friends of Mr. Columbus who came to tell him 
^' good-by." The kings and queens were distinguished 
by royal purple robes and golden crowns and neck- 
laces, produced by the use of colored crayon. 
The three ships made from folded paper. In one of 

them sat Mr. Columbus. 
Fishes, of paper, inhabited the hollow space underneath 

the glass. 

The forest primeval was shown on the American side by 

green twigs of trees set very close together. On pull- 

. ing apart the leaves and peering into the depths of this 

forest, one found it inhabited by bears and other wild 

beasts, also cut from paper. 

The Indians Hved in a village of acorn tents set up 

in a little clearing on the shore. 
Flags. — The Spanish region was identified by a Spanish 
flag, while the stars and stripes waved above the Indian 
village. 

Values. — The project being on the level of the chil- 
dren's experience, they worked freely and with intense 
interest. The characters in the story were all very real 
to them. They literally swarmed about the table when- 
ever opportunity was given, moving the figures about as 
they told the story over and over again. Mr. Columbus 
sailed across the sea many times. Many boats were 
made and named for one of the three, according to the 
preference of the maker. They peeped into the forest 
and shuddered in delightful fear '^ lest a bear get me." 



94 



PRIMARY HANDWORK 




SAND TABLES AND WHAT TO DO WITH THEM 



95 



They made and remade the scene as new ideas suggested 
themselves during several days of Columbus week. 
Several discrepancies existed which are mentioned here 
because they troubled some overconscientious visitors. 
The stars and stripes did not come into existence until 
centuries after Columbus died and therefore never waved 
over the Indian village which he found. But chronology 




Fig. 4q. — A sugar camp. Built late in the spring by a third-grade class. 
They enjoyed the green grass, though it suggests an overlate season. 



does not trouble the first grader very much, while " my 
country " and " my flag " are ideas which are developing 
together. And when he is singing, " Columbus sailed 
across the sea, To find a land for you and me," the red, 
white, and blue forms the most fitting symbol in his repre- 
sentation of that land. The wild animals which infested 
the sand-table forest are not all mentioned in the histories 
as found on San Salvador, but they did exist in the child's 



96- 



PRIMARY HANDWORK 



idea of the wild country which the white men found on 
this side of the Atlantic. The children having truthfully 
expressed their ideas, the teacher had a basis from which 
to develop, correct, and emphasize such points as were of 
real importance, while the unimportant features would 
fade out for lack of emphasis. 

On the occasion of the supervisor's visit the members 
of the class vied with each other in teUing the story and 
explaining the significance of the various illustrations. 




Fig. so. — A western cattle ranch. 

The supervisor expressed a wish to own some of the 
cuttings, whereupon, at a hint from the teacher, the class 
which had gathered about the sand table scampered 
joyfully (but quietly) back to their seats. Scissors and 
paper were quickly distributed, and in about five minutes 
an empty shoe box was required to hold the collection of 
" Mr. Columbuses," kings and queens in royal purple, 
gold crowns, and necklaces, ships, fishes, etc., that were 
showered upon the guest. Needless to say many scraps 
of paper had fallen to the floor. The teacher remarked 



SAND TABLES AND WHAT TO DO WITH THEM 97 

that it was time for the brownies to come. Down went 
all the heads for a sleepy time. The teacher shpped 
about, tapping here and there a child, who quickly began 
gathering up the scraps as joyously as he had helped to 
make them. 

The supervisor bade them good-by, with a wish that all 
children might begin their school Ufe under such happy 
and wholesome influences. 

(2) Story of Jack Horner ^ — First Grade. — As the 
story was read the different characters were subjects for 
free paper-cutting exercises. An abundance of paper 
(scratch paper and newspaper) was supplied, and each 
child allowed to cut each figure many times, very quickly. 

The story was also dramatized and acted out over 
and over again. Figure i shows the result of an hour's 
work in assembling the various characters and telling 
the whole story on the sand table and in a poster. The 
different figures to be cut were assigned to or chosen by 
the different children, the teacher taking care that no 
characters were omitted. Having cut figures of the 
various characters as they were met in the story, all were 
eager to reproduce the part called for, and in a few minutes 
more than enough cuttings were made to supply both 
sand table and poster with ample material. Two groups 
of children, one for the poster and one for the sand table, 
were assigned the work of placing the figures. The 
teacher superintended both projects, giving a few sug- 
gestions as needed, but throwing the responsibility upon 
the children as much as possible. 

This problem was worked out by the same class which 

^ See Riverside Primer. 



giS PRIMARY HANDWORK 

made the Columbus illustration just described. The 
Jack Horner story was illustrated in the spring, after 
much work of this sort had been done. The quality of 
the cuttings showed an interesting improvement over 
the cuttings made for the Columbus story, which came 
during the third week of the school year. 

(3) Story of Three Little Pigs. — This is a long story, 
and three weeks were occupied in reading it and dramatiz- 




FiG. 5: 



The story of Three Little Pigs. First grade. Columbia, Missouri. 



ing it. During this time there were frequent discussions 
about how it was to be worked out on the sand table. 
Contributions in great variety were brought in : straw 
for the straw house, twigs for the house of sticks, bags of 
brick dust to make a roadway different from the sand, 
rose hips to be tied to a small branch to represent the 
apple tree, and various other articles. 

The houses were built as suggested by the pictures in 
the reader. The pig and wolf were modeled in clay, 



SAND TABLES AND WHAT TO DO WITH THEM 99 




lOO. PRIMARY HANDWORK 

each being shown in the several different positions 
described in the story. Over and over a Httle clay pig 
rolled down the hill in a paper churn and frightened a 
clay wolf. One group, not having wherewithal to build 
a brick house, used a wooden one made by another group. 
Another class made the brick house out of blocks, and 
built in a fireplace with its kettle ready to hold the hot 
water whenever the wolf should start for the chimney. 
(See Fig. 51.) 

(4) Japanese Tea Garden. — A third-grade class used 
the sand table to illustrate what they had gleaned from 
reading several stories and descriptions of life in Japan, 
in connection with elementary geography. The sand- 
table representation included a tiny bridge across a small 
stream of '' real " water. The " real river " was secured 
by ingenious use of a leaking tin can which was hidden 
behind a clump of trees (twigs). A thin layer of cement 
in the bed of the river kept the water from sinking into 
the sand. A shallow pan imbedded in the sand formed 
a lake into which the river poured its waters. (See 

Fig. 52.) 

(5) A Coal Mine. — The sand table shown in Fig. 
53 was worked out by a fourth-grade class in connection 
with the geography of the western states. Descriptions 
and pictures were studied with great earnestness to find 
out how to fix it, and the children made it as they 
thought it ought to be. The actual making occupied 
very little time, the various parts being contributed by 
different pupils. 

Problems of this sort develop leadership. There is 
usually one whose ideas take definite shape promptly 



SAND TABLES AND WHAT TO DO WITH THEM lOI 

and whose suggestions are willingly followed by his 
group. If there is one pupil in the class whose ability 
to lead is so strong that the others are overshadowed, it 
is sometimes well to let the work be done by small groups 
who use the table turn about. This plan stimulates a 
wholesome rivalry and discourages dawdling. 

(6) Stories. — Illustrations for two stories are shown 
on page 94. In the first (Fig. 47) part of the class made 
a representation on the sand table while the rest pre- 
pared a poster from paper cuttings. In the second 
(Fig. 48) empty shoe boxes were used in making the 
castle. Very Httle time was spent on either project. 




Fig. 54. — A chariot race. Second grade. Pasadena, California. 



CHAPTER VIII 



ANIMALS AND TOYS 



The circus and the zoological garden are always centers 
of interest to little children and may be used to great 
advantage to furnish the point of departure in the study 
of animal hfe. Making the animals in some form crystal- 
lizes the interest in the animals represented, and awakens 
interest in their habits and home. 

The handwork may be used as an illustrative factor 
connected with geography and nature study, or the 
making of the circus may be the starting point, and in- 
cidentally furnish subject matter in several fields. For 
example, geography and nature study grow out of the 
search for facts concerning the animals themselves, i.e. 
size, color, food, home, value, etc. The desire for such 



ANIMALS AND TOYS 



103 



information gives purpose to reading. Oral and written 
descriptions supply subject matter for practice in Eng- 
lish. Reducing the actual proportions of animals to a 
definite scale and problems relating to their commercial 
value make practical use of the knowledge of number. 
Art enters into the making of free-hand sketches, cuttings, 
and patterns for wooden models. 




Fig. 55. — A circus parade. 



Circus or 



zoo 



may be worked out in a 
Paper, cardboard, clay, and wood 



A good 
variety of materials, 
all serve well. 

To get the best value from the problem it should be 
as free as possible from copy work. The children should 
consult the best sources of information at their disposal, 
which may range all the way from ordinary picture books 
to natural history and encyclopedia descriptions. They 
should find out, unaided, as much as possible concerning 



I04^ 



PRIMARY HANDWORK 



the animal in question : his size, color, food, home, 
values, etc., — the teacher supplementing with interest- 
ing and necessary items not at the disposal of the class. 
Free-hand cuttings and pencil sketches should be 
compared with the best pictures obtainable and the real 
animal whenever possible. Such patterns as are needed 
should be made by the children themselves. Ready- 
made patterns will produce better proportioned animals, 
but more dependent, less observant children also. 



METHODS IN DETAIL 

Realistic Animals in Three-ply Wood. — Secure neces- 
sary items of measurement and decide upon scale. 
One inch for each foot is best for younger children. 

Draw rectangle proportioned to the extreme length 
and height of the animal. Draw into the rectangle a 




Fig. 56. — Three-ply wooden animals. 



ANIMALS AND TOYS 



105 



profile sketch of the animal, being careful that it comes 
to the line on each side. All four feet must touch the 
base Hne. Considerable practice may be needed before 
a good sketch can be drawn. The animal may be rep- 
resented as standing, walking, or running, but must be 
drawn in profile. 

Cut out the sketch and make by it three patterns : 
one of the head, body, 
and tail ; one of the 
body and right legs ; 
one of the body and 
left legs. Care must 
be taken to get good 
lines at shoulder and 
rump. (See Fig. 56.) 

Lay the pattern on 
the wood so that the 
grain runs lengthwise 
of the legs and other f^g. 57 
frail parts and draw 
outline carefully. Use basswood one fourth inch thick, 
or other soft wood. 

Saw out the parts with a coping saw. Be careful in 
sawing to keep the blade in a vertical position in order 
that the edges may be true. 

Nail or glue the parts together. If the animal does 
not stand perfectly, rub the feet on a piece of sandpaper. 
Use water color or crayon to give proper color. 

Three-ply Animals with Movable Parts. —To make the 
head movable, saw the part from the body on a curved 
line, as shown in Fig. 57. Fasten with a single nail 




Detail of three-ply animals with 
movable parts. 



I06 PRIMARY HANDWORK 

through the shoulder. The curved Hne must be a part 
of a circle and the nail must be at the center. The edges 
should be smooth to allow easy action. The tail may 
be adjusted by a similar plan. The parts may be made 
to move automatically by suspending a weight on cords 
which are attached to the movable parts, as shown in 
Fig. 57- If the weight is to be used, cut off the body 
part on the double dotted line to allow room for the cords 
to swing. 

A figure of this sort must be fastened on a pedestal 
or platform which will extend over the edge of the table. 
A slot must be cut in the pedestal wide enough to allow 
the cords to swing freely. (See Fig. 56.) The pedestal 
may be a long board or piece of heavy cardboard which 
can be tacked to the table or held firm by a clamp, or it 
may be a thin board fastened to a U-shaped block which 
is held firm on the edge of the table by a wedge. 

Cardboard and Paper Animals that Stand. — For 
younger children who cannot handle the saw easily 
cardboard or stiff paper may be used. 

To make the animal stand the feet may be tacked 
to a small piece of wood about one inch square on the 

end and as long as needed, 
or a cardboard brace, such 
as is used on easels, may be 
glued to the back. A reahs- 
^'''' ''• "anfmlS''' '"'' ^" ^ic cffcct is givcu if the ani- 
mal is cut with two legs 
and the brace made to represent the other two, or a 
piece of cardboard cut as in Fig. 58 may be used as a 
brace, the body of the animal fitting into the notch. 




ANIMALS AND TOYS 



107 



Clay makes an excellent medium, but it requires more 
skill in clay than in wood to get an equally good effect. 
Clay animals should be modeled with a pedestal, and the 
separations between the two forelegs and the two hind 
legs merely indicated. If each leg is modeled separately, 
the figure is likely to be frail. 



$^mmJ^ ^^ 



Fig. 59. — Balancing figures. 

Balancing Figures. — Design such figures as a pranc- 
ing horse or dancing bear and saw from a single piece 
of wood. A little below the center of the figure insert a 
curved wire, on the other end of which is a ball of clay 
or other weight. The wire must be fastened firmly so 
that it cannot turn. Adjust so that the figure balances. 

Figures of people in foreign costumes, children running 



io8 



PRIMARY HANDWORK 



and jumping, as well as all sorts of animals, are very 
fascinating problems of this sort. i^See Fig. 59.) 

Seesaw Figures. — Such groups as two boys chopping 
wood, two chickens drinking, two dogs tugging at a 
string, wrestHng boys, and similar groups are interesting 
problems of the seesaw type. (See Fig. 60.) 

Detail. — Cut the figures from cardboard. Make 
with a long pedestal. Color with crayon or water color. 
Use two light sticks for the seesaw, to which tack one 




Fig. 60. — Some simple toys. 

figure in a vertical position and the other on a slant. 
Fasten to each stick with one tack. If a central figure 
is used, tack firmly to lower stick. Work the figure by 
moving the upper stick while the lower one is held firm. 
Toys. — A box of carpenter's "scraps of soft wood will 
supply material for a variety of toys which may be made 
by the children themselves, thereby more than doubling 
the fun. A few suggestions are given in detail. The 
making of these will suggest others. (See Fig. 60.) 



ANIMALS AND TOYS 



109 



l\ 



DoWs Swing. — A heavy block for a base, two tall 
uprights, and a crosspiece will make the frame. Make 
a seat from cardboard or use the end of a small box and 
suspend from crossbar. 

DoWs Teeter. — Use a heavy block for a base. Two up- 
rights with double-pointed tacks or notches in the top. 
Drive two double-pointed tacks in lower side of teeter 
board at center. Slip a small rod through the tacks 
and rest in the notches on the uprights. Suspend a 
weight by cords from the lower side of the board, adjust 
until the board balances. The ends of the board should 
be provided with box seats for the doll's 
comfort. 

Railroad Train. — ■ For cars, saw pieces 
from a square stick. For engine, use 
pieces of broomstick or other cylinder. 
Soft wood is better if obtainable. For 
wheels, use pieces of small broomstick 
or dowel rod. (See Fig. 56.) 

Let the children study real trains and 
make the best imitation they can work 
out. 

Jumping Jacks. — Cut the figure from 
light weight cardboard. Make head and 
body in one piece. Cut two arms long 
enough to reach well above the head. 
Make the hands very large. Cut two 
legs either with or without a joint at the 
knee. Color with crayon or water color. 

Fasten the legs and arms to the body with a string 
tied loosely to allow free movements. Make a frame 




Fig. 61. — Adjust- 
ing jumping jack 
in frame. 



no PRIMARY HANDWORK 

of two light stiff sticks and a crosspiece fastened between 
them near the lower end of the sticks. Fasten with 
a single nail at either end of the crosspiece. Cut notches 
near the upper ends of the sticks. Fasten the figure to 
the frame by a stout thread. Use a coarse needle and 
carry the thread through the hands twice, leaving a loop 
on each side to slip over the ends of the sticks into 
the notches. A small block or folded bit of cardboard 
between the hands to keep them apart will improve the 
movement of the toy. Adjust the figure so that the 
threads are parallel when the figure hangs below the 
inverted frame. (See Fig. 6i.) When the frame is 
held upright, the figure will hang between the sticks 
and the threads will be crossed. Press the lower ends 
of the frame together to make the jumping jack 
perform. 

Merry-go-round. — Use a heavy block for a base. Bore 
a hole in the center and insert a square stick, about 
lo in. long. For arms, use two pieces about | in. 
thick and lo in. long. Fasten these together in the form 
of a cross and nail to the top of the upright with a single 
nail. An awl may be used to make the hole a little 
larger than the nail so that the arms will revolve easily. 
Suspend a box seat of wood or cardboard from each arm 
to complete the toy. (See Fig. 59.) 

Games. — Ring Toss. — Use two square pieces of 
board at least J in. thick, one piece larger than the other. 
Bore a hole in the center of the smaller piece with a 
^-in. auger bit. 

For the upright use a stick J in. square and about 12 
in. long. Whittle the corners of the stick until it fits 



ANIMALS AND TOYS III 

firmly into the hole in the small board. Nail the small 
board to the large one. 

For the rings use reeds, Venetian iron, or hoops from 
small buckets or cart wheels. Wrap the rings with 
raffia or yarn. Make at least three rings of varying 
sizes. (See Fig. 60.) 

Playing ring toss and keeping tally makes an excellent 
number game. 

Ten Pins. — From bogus or other heavy paper roll 
and paste cylinders about three inches in diameter and 
about twelve inches long. These may be set on end, 
and any of the common ten pin games played with the 
help of a soft rubber ball. Keeping tally gives excellent 
practice in number. 

Bean Bag Game. — Draw three circles of different sizes 
on a large sheet of heavy cardboard. Carefully cut out 
the circles with a sharp-pointed knife. Mount a picture 
of some animal on each piece cut out. 

Fasten the pieces back in place by a single cloth hinge 
pasted on the back, and at the lowest part of the circle. 

Tack the sheet of cardboard to a Hght wooden frame 
to keep it from bending. 

Let the frame rest against the wall at a slight angle. 
Bean bags thrown at the animals will knock them down 
as they go through the holes. The bean bags should be 
made by the children. Various number games may be 
played with bean bags. 



CHAPTER IX 
HOLIDAYS 

The various holidays which come during the year 
mean so much to Httle children that they should receive 
special notice and should suggest the form of handwork 
to be done at the time. 

Thanksgiving suggests attention to harvest products, 
to be modeled in clay, cut from paper, or drawn with 
crayon ; the making of sand-table scenes showing early 
New England life in various phases ; the making of 
various utensils and commodities of the primitive home 
which differ from our own ; as, for example, the making 
of candles, the hour glass, and the sundial. 

Christmas suggests the making of toys and all sorts 
of things suitable for gifts. If the work centers around 
the Christmas tree, it offers opportunity for cooperation 
in making trimming such as paper chains, pop-corn 
strings, etc., as well as individual gifts. If a tree is not 
obtainable, a box may be dressed up in imitation of 
Santa's sleigh drawn by cardboard reindeer. Whatever 
else is done in honor of the visit of St. Nicholas, the spirit 
of giving should be cultivated by making gifts to some 
younger or less fortunate groups. Picture books may 
be made for sick children, doll furniture and other toys 
for the orphans' home or some family of unfortunates. 
A sack might arrive a week or two before Christmas 



HOLIDAYS 113 

accompanied by a telegram from Santa requesting con- 
tributions to help him out in some specific way and stating 
that it would be called for at a certain time. When a 
" real Santa " calls for the sack, he may leave in its place 
another containing some unexpected treat for the children 
themselves. The gifts which the children contribute 
should be of their own making, that they may have a full 
sense of real giving and not merely the pleasure of de- 
livering the parcels mother has provided. 

Valentine's Day offers an opportunity for developing 
appreciation of a higher form of art than the shop win- 
dows frequently offer, and also investing with pure, 
sweet sentiment a day which means, in some quarters, 
only vulgar sentimentality and coarse jests. 

Easter offers a similar opportunity for emphasis on 
the fine things in color and subjects for greeting cards. 
The season also suggests emphasis on study of budding 
plants and young animal life by means of cutting, paint- 
ing, and modeling. 

Hero days suggest a variety of forms of handwork, 
such as picture making with crayons or cuttings, or pic- 
tures in three dimensions on the sand table, for intensify- 
ing important phases of the hero's life ; illustrated stories 
in booklet form ; and the making of " properties " for 
dramatic representations. These things offer a welcome 
change from the stereotyped ^' Speaking day," and 
stimulate originality and self-reliance. 

So much has been written and so many suggestions 
are constantly being offered in school journals that 
specific suggestions for things to make seem superfluous 
here. 



114 PRIMARY HANDWORK 

Individual Problems. — While community problems 
must form a large part of the handwork in the lower 
grades, it is desirable to have, from time to time, proj- 
ects which seek a definite result from each pupil. In 
the community problem it is possible for the strong 
pupil to monopoKze the values of the work by imposing 
his ideas upon his fellows and by doing all the work 
while the slower pupils are getting ready to begin. In 
the same way it is possible for the lazy pupil to shirk 
much of his responsibility through the eagerness of his 
companions. It is therefore necessary to maintain a 
balance by the use of individual problems of a more 
definite type. These may often be specific parts of the 
community problem, but this will not meet all the needs 
of the case. The special days offer excellent occasion 
for work of this sort in addition to the cooperative prob- 
lems which are undertaken by the class as a whole. 



CHAPTER X 
GENERAL SUGGESTIONS AND SUMMARY 

Modification of Outlines. — All the projects outlined 
in the foregoing pages are capable of modification and 
adaptation to the needs of several grades. For this 
reason, in nearly every problem, many more suggestions 
are offered than will often be appKcable in any one in- 
stance of its development. The directions are, for the 
most part, given from the standpoint of the first grade, 
on the principle that it is easier to add to the detail of a 
problem than to simpHfy it. On the other hand, the 
directions are not generally specific in detail, in order 
to prevent as far as possible a mechanical copying of any 
project. 

Emphasis on Self-expression. — It is desired to place 
special emphasis upon the point that each project under- 
taken, if it is to reach its highest value, must come as 
fully as possible from the children themselves and be to 
the very fullest extent their self-expression. 

Not any house described in this hook, nor any house 
seen in another schoolroom, nor even the house which /, 
as teacher, plan in detail, will he most valuable to my class; 
but rather our house, which we; teacher and pupils work- 
ing together, evolve to suit our own needs and fancies, 
using suggestions gathered from every available source, 
but adapting them to our own needs. 

115 



Il6 PRIMARY HANDWORK 

Self -directed Activity and Discipline. — The terms 
''self-directed activity" and ''self-expression" must not 
be confounded with the idea of letting the children do as 
they please in any random and purposeless fashion. If 
one were to start out to escort a group of children to a 
certain hilltop, it is quite probable that some of them 
would run part of the way. Others would walk in twos 
and threes, and these would change about. They would 
halt to look at things that attracted their attention. 
The leader would halt them to observe some interesting 
point which they might otherwise miss. Should any of 
them wander from the right path the leader would call 
them back, and any frail child would be helped over the 
hard places. Yet with all this freedom the group might 
move steadily forward and reach the hilltop in due time. 

All progress up the hill of knowledge should follow a 
similar plan. The teacher should have a very definite 
idea of the end to be attained. The children should 
work with a purpose, and that purpose should be of such 
immediate interest to them that they would be anxious 
to attain.it. They would then work earnestly, and dis- 
cipline would settle itself. Handwork projects should 
be sufhciently simple to allow each worker to see his way 
through, or at least find his way without waiting for 
directions at each step. Instead of a blind following 
of such directions the worker should at all times feel 
himself the master of his tools and materials and be able 
to make them obey his impulse and express his idea. 
This attitude toward work can be secured only when the 
work is kept quite down to the level of the child's ability 
and appreciation. Only by this means can we hope to 



GENERAL SUGGESTIONS AND SUMMARY II7 

establish the inspiring and strengthening '' habit of 
success." 

Introduction of New Methods. — The question arises, 
How shall work of this sort be adapted to a course of 
study which is already full and does not provide time for 
handwork ? Handwork takes more time than bookwork, 
and children evolve plans but slowly. If the teacher 
waits for the children to evolve plans and then carry 
them out on their own responsibihty, the quantity of 
work produced will be small and the quality poor com- 
pared with the results gained by other methods. 

The freer method must be justified, not by its tangible 
results, but by its value as a means of individual develop- 
ment. If it is true that 

" One good idea known to be thine own 
Is worth a thousand gleaned from fields by others sown," 

then it follows that a small quantity of crude work may 
often represent greater genuine growth than a larger 
quantity of nicely finished work, if the latter has been 
accompKshed by such careful dictation that individual 
thought on the part of the pupils was unnecessary. 

Common sense is the best guide in introducing a new 
method of work. Any sudden transition is likely to be 
disastrous. Responsibihty in new fields should be shifted 
from teacher to pupils as rapidly as they are able to carry 
it, but it should never be transferred in wholesale fashion. 
This is especially true of a class that is accustomed to wait 
for the teacher's permission or command in all the small 
details of schoolroom Hfe, such, as speaking, moving 
about the room, etc. 



Il8 PRIMARY HANDWORK 

The freer methods may be introduced by either of 
two plans. In carrying through the first sand-table 
project, for example,- the teacher may plan the details 
quite as definitely as is her custom in general work, 
assign each part to a particular pupil, and guide his 
execution of it as far as necessary. With each succeed- 
ing project more and more freedom may be granted, as 
the children become accustomed to community work 
and learn how to use the materials involved. Or, the 
work may be introduced by allowing two or three very 
trustworthy pupils to work out, quite alone, some simple 
project which will appeal to the entire class as very 
desirable. Other projects may be worked out by other 
pupils as they show themselves worthy of trust. Such 
a plan sets a premium upon independence and ability 
to direct one's own actions, and has a beneficial effect 
upon general discipline. Each individual teacher 
must follow the plan which best accords with her 
individual habits and the conditions under which she 
works. No rule can be rated as best under any and 
all circumstances. 

New and Different Projects. — Teachers frequently 
spend time and nerve force seeking new projects sup- 
posedly to stimulate the interest of the children. Often 
a careful examination into the true motives back of the 
search would prove that it is not so much to stimulate 
the interest of the children as to Call forth the admiration 
of other teachers. Because a house was built last year 
does not hinder the building of another this year. If 
the children are allowed ample freedom, the houses will 
not be alike. If the teacher is centering her interest 



GENERAL SUGGESTIONS AND SUMMARY II9 

in the development of the children and not in the things 
the children make, the projects will always be new be- 
cause worked out in a new way by a different group of 
children. Monotony comes about through the teacher's 
attempt to plan out details and impose them upon the 
children, a process quite similar to the use of predigested 
foods. 

Quality of Work. — Methods such as outhned above 
are sometimes criticized because of the crudity of the, 
results. It is sometimes argued that the crude work 
establishes low standards and that better finished work 
of a more useful type is more desirable in school projects. 
Certainly everything which is done in school should be 
useful. School years are too precious to be wasted, in 
any degree, on a thing which is useless. But it is im- 
portant to have a right standard for measuring the use- 
fulness of a project. Since it is the child's interest and 
effort which are to be stimulated, his work must be useful 
from his point of view. The things that he works upon 
must be valuable to him personally. It is not enough 
for the teacher to be satisfied with the value of the sub- 
ject matter. It must, as far as possible, be self-evident to 
the child himself. 

In the growing period a child is always anxious to 
excel himself and attain a higher level, nearer the adult 
standards. He measures his growth, not only in inches, 
but in abihty to run faster, jump farther, count higher, 
and so on. So long as he is stimulated by an interesting 
motive he puts forth his best effort. It is only when we 
set him tasks and demand blind obedience that he lags. 
If his crude work represents his best effort, honestly 



I20 PRIMARY HANDWORK 

put forth, he will, and he does, desire to do something 
better each time he tries. If he is permitted to work 
freely upon projects of immediate interest to him, he not 
only becomes familiar with various materials and the 
purposes they may serve, but he also begins to realize 
his inability to make them always obey his impulse. 
As soon as he discovers that there are better and easier 
ways of working which bring about more satisfactory 
results, he is anxious to learn the tricks of the trade ; and 
he comes to the later, more technical courses in hand- 
work, not only with more intelligence, but also with an 
appreciation of their value which is reflected in the 
quality of his work. 

Summary. — The last word, as the first in this little 
book, would stress the fact that it is always possible to 
improve present conditions. 

Activity is an essential factor in a child's development 
in school as well as out. Handwork is an important 
phase of this necessary activity. Neither lack of time, 
scarcity of material, nor lack of training on the part of 
the teacher is a suflicient excuse for failure to use some 
handwork in every school. Much can be accomplished 
with materials which are to be found anywhere, without 
using more time than is ordinarily devoted to the sub- 
ject, and with better results, if we will but realize that 
educative handwork is not confined to the making of a 
few books, boxes, mats, or baskets after a prescribed 
pattern, however good in themselves these may be, but 
is also a means through which we may teach other subject 
matter. 

We not only learn to do by doing, but we come to 



GENERAL SUGGESTIONS AND SUMMARY 121 

know through trying to do. And wc often learn more 
through our failures than through our successes. We 
defraud the children if we deprive them of this important 
factor in their development. Any teacher who is wiUing 
to begin with what she has and let the children do the best 
they can with it, will lind unexpected resources and 
greater opportunities at every hand. 

Let us not allow ourselves to grow disheartened through 
vain wishes for the impossible or for the advantages of 
some other field, but attack our own with vigor and 
determination ; for 

"The common problem, yours, mine, every one's 
Is — not to fancy what were fair in life 
Provided it could be — but, finding first 
What may be, then find how to make it fair 
Up to our means." 



REFERENCES 

Dewey — The School and the Child ; School and Society ; 
The Child and the Curriculum. 

O'Shea — Djaiamic Factors in Education. 

Scott — Social Education. 

Dopp — The Place of Industries in Elementary Education. 

Bone — The Service of the Hand in the School. 

Sargent — Fine and Industrial Arts. 

Row — The Educational Meaning of Manual Arts and In- 
dustries. 

Charters — Methods of Teaching. 

Bagley — The Educative Process. 

Russell — The School and Industrial Life. Educational Re- 
view, Dec. 1909. 

Sykes and Bonser — Industrial Education. Teachers College 
Record, Sept. iqii. 

Bennett — The Place of Manual Arts in Education. Educa- 
tional Review, Oct. 191 1. 

Richards — Handwork in the Primary School. Manual 
Training Magazine, Oct. 1901. 

References for Classroom Use 

Coping Saw Work Johnston 

School Drawing Daniels 

Little Folks Handy Book Beard 

World at Work Series Dutton 

Big People and Little People of Other Lands Shaw 

How We Are Fed Chamberlain 

How We Are Clothed Chamberlain 

How We Are Sheltered Chamberlain 

123 



124 PRIMARY HANDWORK 

Continents and their People Chamberlain 

How the World is Fed Carpenter 

How the World is Clothed Carpenter 

How the World is Housed Carpenter 

Around the World .Series Tolman 

Youth's Companion Series Lane 

The Bird Woman , . . . Chandler 

The Tree Dwellers Dopp 

The Early Cave Men Dopp 

The Later Cave Men Dopp 



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GANONG, William F., Ph.B., Smith College. The Teaching 

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GRAVES, Frank Pierrepont, Ph.B., Professor of the History 
of Education in the University of Pennsylvania. Great Ed- 
ucators of Three Centuries. Cloth, i2mo, viii+ 289 pages . $1.10 

— A History of Education Before the Middle Ages. Cloth, i2mo, 

xiv + 304 pages $1.10 

—A History of Education During the Middle Ages and The Transi- 
tion to Modern Times. Cloth, i2mo, xv+328 pages . . . $1.10 

— A History of Education in Modern Times. Cloth, i2mo, xv + 410 

pages $1.10 

— Peter Ramus and the Educational Reformation of the Sixteenth 

Century. Cloth, i2mo, ix+ 226 pages $1.25 

GREGORY, B. C, Late Superintendent of Schools in Trenton, 
New Jersey, and in Chelsea, Massachusetts. Better Schools. 
Cloth, i2mo, vii-1- 283 pages $1.25 

HALLECK, Reuben Post. The Education of the Central Ner- 
vous System. A Study of Foundations, especially of Sensory 
and Motor Training. Cloth, i2m*o, xii + 258 pages . . . $1.00 

HANUS, Paul H., Professor of the History and Art of Teaching 
in Harv^ard University. A Modern School. Cloth, i2mo, 
x + 306 pages $1.25 

— Educational Aims and Educational Values. Cloth, i2mo, vii + 

221 pages Ii.oo 



BOOKS FOR TEACHERS — Continued 



HENDERSON, Ernest N., Professor of Education and Philoso- 
phy in Adelphi College, Brooklyn. The Principles of Edu- 
cation. Cloth, 8vo, xiv-|- 570 pages $i-75 

HERRICK, Cheesman A., Ph.D., Director of School of Com- 
merce, Philadelphia Central High School. Cloth, xv + 378 
pages $1.25 

HORNE, Herm.an H.vrrell, Assistant Professor of Philosophy 
and Pedagogy in Dartmouth College. The Philosophy of 
Education. Cloth, 8vo, xvii -|- 305 pages $1.50 

— The Psychological Principles of Education. Cloth, i2mo, xiii -|- 

435 pages $1.75 

— Idealism in Education. Cloth, limo, xxi + 183 pages . . . $1.25 

HOLTZ, Frederick L., A.:M., Head of the Model School, Brook- 
lyn Training School for Teachers, New York City. Princi- 
ples and Methods of Teaching Geography. Cloth, 1 2mo, xii -|- 

359 pages $1.10 

HUEY, Edmund B., of the Western University of Pennsylvania. 
The Psychology and Pedagogy of Reading. Cloth, 1 2mo, xvi -{■ 
469 pages $1.40 

JONES, Olive M., LEARY, Eleanor G., and QUISH, Agnes E. 
Teaching Children to Study. The Group System applied. 
Cloth, i2mo, illustrated, viii-l-193 pages $0.80 

KILPATRICK, Van Evrie. Departmental Teaching in Elemen- 
tary Schools. Cloth, 1 2mo, xiii + 130 pages $0.60 

KIRKPATRICK, Edwin A., Principal of State Normal School, 
Fitchburg, Mass. Fundamentals of Child Study. Cloth, 1 2mo, 
xxi -I- 384 pages $1.25 

— Genetic Psychology. Cloth, xv + 373 pages $1.25 

MACVANNEL, John Angus, Ph.D., Professor of the Philosophy 
of Education in Teachers College, Columbia University. Out- 
line of a Course in the Philosophy of Education. Cloth, 1 2mo, 
1x4-207 pages $0.90 

MAJOR, David R., Professor of Education in the Ohio State Uni- 
versity. First Steps in Mental Growth. Cloth, i2mo, xiv-t- 

360 pages $1.25 

MANGOLD, George B., Ph.D., Associate Director St. Louis 
School of Social Economy. Child Problems. Cloth, i2mo, 
XV -1-381 pages $1.25 

MANN, C. Riborg, Associate Professor of Physics, The Univer- 
sity of Chicago. The Teaching of Physics for Purposes of 
General Education. Cloth, i2mo, xxv-l-304 pages . . . $1.25 

McKEEVER, William A., Professor of Child Welfare in the Uni- 
versity of Kansas. Farm Boys and Girls. Cloth, 1 2mo, illus- 
trated, xviii +326 pages $1.50 

— Training the Boy. Cloth, i2mo, illustrated, xvi -h 368 pages . $1.50 



BOOKS FOR TEACHERS — Continued 



McKEEVER, William A. The Industrial Training of the Boy. 

Cloth, i2mo, illustrated, viii + 72 pages $0.50 

— Training the Girl. Cloth, i2mo, illustrated, xviii + 337 pages . $1.50 

MONROE, Paul. A Text-book in the History of Education. 

Cloth, i2mo, xxiii + 277 pages $1.90 

— A Source Book of the History of Education. For the Greek and 

Roman Period. Cloth, 8vo, xiii + 515 pages $2.25 

O'SHEA, M. v., Professor of the Science and Art of Education, 
University of Wisconsin. Dynamic Factors in Education. 
Cloth, 1 2mo, xiii + 320 pages $1.25 

— Linguistic Development and Education. Cloth, i2mo, xvii + 

347 pages $1.25 

PARK, Joseph C, State Normal and Training School, Oswego, 
New York. Educational Woodworking for Home and School. 
Cloth, 1 2mo, illustrated, xii + 210 pages $1.00 

PERRY, Arthur C, Jr., Ph.D., Principal of Public School 
No. 85, Brooklyn, N.Y. The Management of a City School. 
Cloth, i2mo, viii + 350 pages $1.25 

— Outlines of School Administration. Cloth, i2mo, viii + 452 pages $1.40 

PYLE, William Henry, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Educa- 
tional Psychology in the University of Missouri. The Ex- 
amination of School Children. Cloth, i2mo, v + 70 pages . $0.50 

ROWE, Stuart H., Professor of Psychology and the History of 
Education, Training School for Teachers, Brooklyn, New 
York. The Physical Nature of the Child. Cloth, i2mo, vi-l- 
211 pages $0.90 

ROYCE, JosiAH, Professor of the History of Philosophy in Har- 
vard University. Outlines of Psychology. Cloth, i2mo, 
xxvii-H392 pages $1.90 

SACHS, Julius, Ph.D., Professor of Secondary Education in 
Teachers College, Columbia University. The American Sec- 
ondary School and Some of its Problems. Cloth, 1 2mo, xviii -|- 
295 pages $1.10 

SCHULTZE, Arthur, formerly instructor at New York Univer- 
sity on the Teaching of Mathematics in Secondary Schools. 
The Teaching of Mathematics in Secondary Schools. Cloth, 
i2mo, xx-f 370 pages . . . . • $1.25 

SHAW, Edward R., the late. School Hygiene. Cloth, i2mo, 

vii-f255 pages $1.00 

SHEARER, William J., A.M., Ph.D., Superintendent of Schools 
of the City of Elizabeth and County of Union, N.J. The 
Management and Training of Children. Cloth, i2mo, xii-f- 
287 pages $1.50 



BOOKS FOR TEACHERS — Continued 



SMITH, David E., Professor of Mathematics, Tcaclicrs Collcsc, 
Columbia University. The Teaching of Elementary Mathe- 
matics. Cloth, 1 2mo, XV + 312 pages $1.00 

SNEATH, E. Hershey, Ph.D., LL.D., Professor in Yale Uni- 
versity, and HODGES, George, D.D., D.C.L., Dean of the 
Episcopal Theological School, Cambridge. Moral Training 
in School and Home. Cloth, i2mo, vii + 221 pages . . $0.80 

SNEDDEX, David S., and ALLEN, Willi.\m U. For the New 
York Committee on Physical Welfare of School Children. 
School Reports and School Efficiency. Cloth, i2mo, xi-|- 183 
pages ". $1.50 

STARCH, D.-^niel, Ph.D., University of Wisconsin. Experi- 
ments in Educational Psychology. Cloth, i2mo, vii 4-183 
pages $o.go 

STRAYER, George Drayton, Ph.D., Professor of Educational 
Administration. Formerly Adjunct Professor of Elementary 
Education, Teachers College, Columbia University. A Brief 
Course in the Teaching Process. Cloth, i2mo, xiv -|- 315 pages $1.25 

STRAYER, George Drayton, Ph.D., Professor of Educational 
Administration, and THORNDIKE, Edward L.. Teachers 
College, Columbia University. Educational Administration- 
Quantitative Studies. Cloth, i2mo, xii -|- 391 pages . . . $2.00 

TAYLOR, Joseph S., Ph.D., District Superintendent of Schools, 
New York. Principles and Methods of Teaching Reading. 
Cloth, i2mo, xiii + 238 pages $0.90 

THORNDIKE, Edward L., Professor of Educational Psychology 
in Teachers College, Columbia University. Education: A 
First Book. Cloth, i2mo, ix+292 pages $1.25 

VANDEWALKER, Nina C, Director of Kindergarten Training 
Department, Milwaukee State Normal School. The Kinder- 
garten in American Education. Cloth, 1 2mo, xiii + 274 pages, 
index $1.25 

WARD, Florence Elizabeth, Professor of Kindergarten Educa- 
tion, Iowa State Teachers College. The Montessori Method 
and the American School. Cloth, i2mo, illustrated, xvi -{- 243 
pages $1.25 

WARNER, Francis. The Study of Children and Their School 

Training. Cloth, i2mo, xix-(-264 pages $1.00 



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